


Great Minds (Think Alike)

by liquid_dreams



Series: Snake Charming [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: (happens in a dream), (hopefully), Bestiality, Blood Drinking, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, C'mon It's Orochimaru what do you expect, Canon Universe, Canon-Typical Behavior, Choking, Consensual Violence, Death Threats, Disturbing Themes, Dream Sex, Dubious Morality, Emotional Constipation, Emotionally Repressed, Ethics? What Ethtics? Never heard of her, F/M, Female Protagonist, Gross, In Love, Mad Scientists, Medical Experimentation, Mental Instability, Murderers, Non-Consensual Bondage, Nonconsensual Dream Sex, Not A Fix-It, Nothing gets fixed, Past Child Abuse, Post-Fourth Shinobi War, Post-Series, Snakes, Sorry Not Sorry, The Author Regrets Nothing, what could go wrong?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-07
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-10-24 05:01:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 22,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17698130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liquid_dreams/pseuds/liquid_dreams
Summary: Medical nin don't go rogue. Everybody in her village knew that. Her father, chief of the med nin in Amegakure, said so with utmost conviction. It was unheard of. Kusakawa Naomi, however, had the unfortunate habit of not blindly believing everything she heard. She considered herself a woman of science. If a claim could not withstand scientific scrutiny she considered it a falsehood. There were no statistics detailing the rates and chances of med nin going rogue simply because nobody ever bothered to create such a statistic. Therefore she considered it inaccurate to claim that no med nin ever went rogue. She was the living proof.





	Great Minds (Think Alike)

**Author's Note:**

> ~Mind the tags please~
> 
> So, uh. This is awkward. *rubs neck* If you'd told me a month ago that I'd get back into Naruto someday I would've laughed at you. But then I was clicking through Ghostemane songs on Youtube and found a Madara Uchiha AMV. So yeah, Madara is the root of all evil. No surprises there.
> 
> > The story takes place 4 years after the 4th Shinobi World War, just to give you a time reference.
> 
> The soundtrack that inspired this fic is: **± |lemniscata| - sh♡w me l♡ve ±**

Medical nin don't go rogue. Everybody in her village knew that. Her father, chief of the med nin in Amegakure, said so with utmost conviction. It was unheard of. Kusakawa Naomi, however, had the unfortunate habit of not blindly believing everything she heard. She considered herself a woman of science. If a claim could not withstand scientific scrutiny she considered it a falsehood. There were no statistics detailing the rates and chances of med nin going rogue simply because nobody ever bothered to create such a statistic. Therefore she considered it inaccurate to claim that no med nin ever went rogue. She was the living proof. 

Naomi sighed into the darkness of the cave she was currently hiding in. Perhaps it shouldn't have come as a surprise. How quick the Ame nin were to discard their celebrated 'prodigy' when it became public just how she developed her highly refined techniques. Her lips curled into a bitter smile. Surely they'd rename the 'Kusakawa Method' for performing a non-intrusive appendectomy to something less incriminating now. Those fools in the medical school had wanted innovation without sacrifice. It was her firm belief that the sacrifices of her test subjects would help prevent countless more deaths in the future. The leadership of Amegakure disagreed. It wasn't all bad, though. Under Pain and Konan's leadership she would've been killed, while the current ruling council merely exiled her. 

This posed another problem. Naomi had never left Amegakure. She'd spent most of her time cooped up in the medical facility's research lab, at first watching her father's experiments, then doing her own. It led to her becoming the first ever med nin in Amegakure to successfully finish training at age fourteen. Now, six years later, she was an authority on the field of experimental technique development recognized even by the genius Uchiha Sakura. Her chakra control was so refined and precise that she could heal the most complicated injuries with ease and minimal chakra expediture. It was a very specific skillset that didn't help at all in the current situation. She'd taken shelter in this cave for the night, but it wasn't that far from Amegakure. The cold and dankness both prevented her from sleeping. Added to that the worry about her future. Should she risk building a fire? The guards and patrols were authoritzed to kill her on sight. 

Naomi drew her knees up to her chest. The hearing had been mere hours ago, the banishment instant. She hadn't even been allowed to pack her bags. As such she was still wearing her lab coat, having been interrupted in the middle of a delicate experiment. It was indoor clothing. Both the lab coat and her casual attire, which consisted of a short black crop top with a sleeveless mesh shirt underneath, a short black skirt and mesh thighs with black sandals at her feet. Like this she couldn't even stretch her legs out on the ground without shivering. Her father had been right, she should've covered herself some more. His well-meaning advice fell on deaf ears and now she paid the price. She wasn't only a science genius, she was also a woman. As a woman she'd enjoyed the looks. After all her schedule rarely allowed for downtime or social interaction. The only looks she'd earn now would be of disdain. She reached up and untied her headband. 

For a while it was a common sight to see nin with the four vertical strokes crossed out inside the village for fear of persecution. Those were the years after Pain took over. These days people wore the village symbol as intended. Ultimately it doesn't matter, she thought. Naomi's agile mind was desperate for any distraction. For a lack of anything better to do, she focused her chakra in her fingertip until the bright green glow was intense. Then she slowly slid the tip of her index finger across the four stripes, leaving a gash in its wake. Satisfied with her work she tied the headband back around her forehead. It was nearly always covered by her long straight bangs anyway. 

"Alright, screw them," she muttered into the darkness. "Ungrateful bastards."

After all the good she'd done for them! She healed countless shinobi, even brought several back from death's door, and this was the thanks she got? She'd even developed a new medicine against the common rain cough after studying the blood and mucus of afflicted individuals. Did it really matter that a few of them died after ingesting the initial solution? She refined the formula until most of the side effects were gone! But no, no that was apparently 'unethical'. 

She snorted. Unethical. Only according to the laws of Tsunade. Aside from the big four she'd come up with several lesser known rules for med nin in her later years. Such as forbidding studies on living, conscious humans. Bah. Naomi could only wonder about the state of Konohagakure's medical science. After Tsunade retired from the position her prize disciple Haruno Sakura took over as leader of their med nin. Now Uchiha Sakura. That much she heard from the news and gossip. Not a bad catch. Her sharp grey eyes glazed over as she thought about all the ways she could study the Uchiha heritage. They were still known as one of the most powerful clans, even reduced down to only one member. Blood, skin and cell samples. Oh how she longed to get a hold of them. She gnawed on her lower lip. As a missing nin, a rogue ninja, there was little chance of her ever seeing a proper lab from the inside again. It broke her heart, really. 

As the night progressed she decided to screw it and tore off the sleeves of her lab coat. Then she carefully ventured outside and gathered a few moist branches. It took ages until the makeshift campfire started to burn, crackling and hissing loudly as the moisture evaporated from the wood. Naomi could be patient when it suited her. She resumed her position on a flat rock, drew her knees back up and stared at the flames. It gave off very little warmth, not nearly enough to warm her through. As it was pouring outside she didn't want to go look for more branches. If she got wet now there was a good chance she'd get sick. Being a med nin was all well and good, but she couldn't cure a cough with chakra alone. 

"Aah, this sucks," she huffed into the silence. 

As if on cue her stomach growled. She couldn't remember when she had her last meal. Her studies often fascinated her so much that she simply forgot to eat. How insufferable. Amegakure's strongest med nin, reduced to an exiled miser. Naomi was under no illusion that help from her family was coming. In fact, she suspected her jealous siblings to be the source of her misfortune. One of them, Yukiko or Keiji, might have clued the council in. They were always snooping around, trying to steal her secrets. Was it her fault that she was simply born with superior intellect compared to the lot of them? They must've found her secret lab at the outskirts of the village. Surely they'd grab a hold of her notes now and try to pass her innovations off as their own. Imbeciles, the lot of them. Not a whiff of an inquisitive mind, but a whole lot of pride and a holier-than-thou attitude. It had always stood between them. 

A loud snap outside the cave made her tense. An animal, perhaps? Or a patrol. This far from the village borders? Might be. Nevertheless she reached inside the big pockets of her coat and grabbed a hold of her weapon of choice: scalpels. If needed she could summon a whole lot of them connected by invisible chakra strings to move as she pleased. Truth to be told, Naomi disliked combat. It was so tedious and chances of injury were high. On the other hand, this intense dislike had at one point spurred her to become proficient with her weapons and make up her own techniques to end it quickly. Silence. She waited, hands on her weapons, and stared at the cave entrance. Suddenly a figure moved in the dim light. 

"I'm armed and dangerous, so piss off!" She said loudly. 

A dry chuckle was the only reply she got. The figure came closer slowly and she began to make out the outline of a tall man. A man with long hair and bangs that covered half his face. Dressed in a loose white wrap tunic with a black shirt underneath and black pants. No headband. When he stepped into the firelight she saw his other, rather striking features. A soft face, purple markings around his golden eyes with slitted pupils. Really white skin. Paper white. How oddly snake-like, she thought as she regarded him. He was unlike anybody she'd ever met. It tickled her curiosity. 

"How rude," he said lightly. 

"Sorry," she replied automatically. "I'm not having a good day."

"What are you doing in this place, all alone?"

"Why do you care?" She retorted instantly. 

He chuckled again. His voice was dark and rather hoarse sounding. "My name is Orochimaru. I was passing by this cave when I sensed some rather strong chakra in here."

"Flattery will get you nowhere," she said bluntly. "I'm Kusakawa Naomi."

His eyes lit up and he tilted his head back ever so slight. "Is that so? I've heard of you before. You developed a lot of interesting theories."

"Yes well," she muttered and scratched the handle of her scalpel with her thumb nail.

"What are you doing here? Research?" He asked mildly and gave the cave a cursory glance. 

"Yes. With my brand new invisible microscope and nonexistent equipment," she said bitterly. 

He tilted his head to the side with a mildly amused expression. "I mean you no harm."

Naomi huffed and withdrew her hands from her pockets. A miserable expression grew on her face and she wrapped her arms around her knees. 

"They threw me out," she muttered. "Said my experiments were unethical."

"Ah."

"I'm on my own now. So if you've come to pick my brain or discuss theories, I'm afraid I'm not in the mood."

"So you decided the best course of action would be to mope in a moist cave?"

Naomi glared at his mocking tone. "Spare me! I don't have a clue where to go from now and it's raining like hell today! So if all you offer is ridicule-!"

"Actually," he cut in, "Your current situation is not unfamiliar to me. I've had similiar experiences in my youth. It would be a shame to waste potential such as yours in this place. As I am a scientist of some renown myself, I own and operate several laboratories. What I offer is employment."

"Oh?" She perked up. 

This guy looked as shady as they got. His offer was tinged in hidden meaning. Those snake eyes were unreadable and kind of gave her the creeps, but the promise of getting to work in a lab again was too good. Naomi stood up swiftly. 

"Well then," she said merrily. "Count me in."

"Just like that?" He asked curiously. 

"You had me at 'laboratory'," she replied with a grin and stuck out her hand. 

He blinked at her and then regarded her for a moment before shaking her hand briefly. "Are you not curious about my experiments?"

"Oh, absolutely. Tell me everything. Preferably on the way!" She beamed and winced when her stomach growled. 

Naomi quickly punched the offending organ. Orochimaru looked amused. "Very well."

 

There was no doubt in her mind that he hadn't revealed everything he did, or been entirely truthful about the research he told her about. Naomi didn't really care. His lab was amazing. Once they'd travelled to Otogakure, the village he'd founded, she promptly took to exploring the large facility, carefuly to stay out of the forbidden rooms. She didn't want any beef with him. It very quickly became clear that he was sort of a big deal. He showed her one lab where she could research diseases and anything else she liked. It was truly paradise. There was equipment they didn't even have in Amegakure! She'd asked what he wanted in exchange and he only gave her a vague answer. Probably wanted the results to use for whatever. It was fine, it was all fine. Especially after she got a really good meal as an added bonus. Even a small bedroom of her own, relatively close to her lab. 

The very next morning he brought a vial full of blood to her and asked her to analyze its components. Naomi accepted the vial and studied the blood for a moment before she nodded. 

"Sure thing, boss," she muttered. 

"You don't have to call me that," he said. 

"What? Boss?" She blinked at him. 

"Yes."

"What else am I to call you then?"

"Orochimaru is fine."

"It's kind of a mouthful," she replied slowly. "But okay."

He nodded and left her to it. The blood was curious. The whole cell make-up, the components, everything. It was unlike any blood sample she'd ever studied, human or not. A truly fascinating challenge. Naomi eagerly got down to studying it. She prodded and poked at it until come afternoon, when she found out by chance that the cells reacted to electric stimuli. Given a tiny shock, the red blood cells enlargened and tripled their capacity to carry oxygen. Huh. Naomi sat back on her chair with furrowed brows and rubbed her chin. 

"Huh," she said. 

"Found anything interesting?" Orochimaru asked with a small smile.

Naomi jumped a little when he suddenly appeared behind her and swirveled around with an accusing stare. 

"Don't scare me!" She scolded. "Do you want me to get a heart attack!?"

"You're too young for that," he replied lightly. 

"Anyway," she said with a small glare. "The erythrocytes react to electric stimuli."

"Very good," he nodded. "What else?"

"They grow larger, increasing the oxygen rates they can carry. Where did you get that sample? I'm dying of curiosity!"

Orochimaru grinned. "From one of my test subjects. He's capable of shapeshifting when he becomes angry."

"Neural stimulous?" Her eyes widened and he nodded. "Brilliant!"

"Isn't it?" He agreed. "You've proven to be just as capable as your reputation suggests."

"Well of course," she mumbled and turned back to the microscope.

Naomi had never been good at accepting praise. She fiddled with the settings out of nervous habit. A hand landed on her shoulder and made her look up at his indecipherable, smiling expression.

"I will continue testing you. I'm sure you understand," he said. 

Naomi sighed and nodded. Of course. This whole operation seemed barely legal at most. It figured that he wanted to be certain he could trust her. 

"Should you continue to meet my expections I might consider letting you help with other.. more delicate experiments."

"Sure thing, boss. Ah- Orochimaru," she corrected herself with a small smile. 

"Good. Princess?"

"H-huh?" She blinked in confusion.

He took the sidelock that framed the left side of her face between his thumb and index finger. 

"That is what they call this hairstyle, yes? The hime cut."

"Oh. Yes," she replied hesitantly. 

He let go of her hair and simply turned around. Naomi felt weird. She touched her hair feeling oddly self-conscious. She'd gotten this hairstyle years ago after she saw it in a fashion magazine and never really changed. Most of the time she had her hair tied up in a bun so it was out of the way, with only the bangs loose around her face. She thought it looked good, so why had he been grinning like that? At first she thought he called her a princess, but that was absurd. It still made her insides jump so she resolved to put that moment in a drawer at the very back of her mental archives. 

 

Just as promised he handed her several more samples to analyze. Blood mostly, but also cell and flesh samples. All from his so-called subjects. All highly unusual and fascinating. Naomi felt like she lost several pounds since her arrival. She wrote everything she discovered down and soon the tables were littered with papers and journals. She also started to experiment with the samples, despite not being asked to. Naomi simply wanted to know what made them react. For all of them appeared to have something that made them different from regular human blood. Probably kekkai genkai. It was curious why or how Orochimaru had that many subjects with them. Clans with those special abilities usually kept a tight grip on their members. In the wrong hands they could be studied and used against them. Naomi quietly suspected that Orochimaru's hands were quite wrong in this case. That man's thirst for knowledge rivaled her own. His methods were similiar, too. It was refreshing to be allowed to experiment as she pleased. A knock on her door interrupted her concentration, just as she was infusing a slab of meat with her chakra. 

"Who is it?" She called distractedly and watched the meat twitch. 

"I'm Yakushi Kabuto," an unfamiliar voice responded. 

"Ah, do come in."

She heard the door open as she prodded the meat with one of her scalpels. The lesion widened without her doing until the dark red tissue became visible. It quivered dangerously. Footsteps approached her table. 

"So you're the new scientist Orochimaru-sama has brought in," he said.

He was a young man with white hair in a ponitail, round glasses and the same eyes as Orochimaru for some reason, complete with purple markings. He was smiling politely. It was fake. Naomi threw him a fleeting look before she glanced back down. Was the meat.. swelling? Curious, she stabbed it again. 

"What are you doing?" He asked with interest. 

"Experimenting. These samples are quite fascinating," she glanced up at him again and threw him a quick smile. "I'm Kusakawa Naomi."

"Ah?" One of his brows rose with genuine interest. "I've heard about you. Med nin from Amegakure."

"Former," she agreed amiably and snapped on a pair of safety goggles. "Stand back."

Kabuto, much to his credit, listened without objection. Naomi nodded to herself and held her hands over the meat palms down. It was a ruptured ugly mess. Under the glow of her chakra the flesh began to disintegrate completely. So the sample did not accept foreign chakra and reacted with self-destruction. Interesting. Highly unusual and fatal in combat. 

"This one is a goner. Better off as a civilian," she muttered and took off her goggles.

"What were those for?" He asked and nodded at them.

"Oh, I always wear them during operations. In case something ruptures. I don't want blood in my eyes," she replied airly as she desinfected her hands. 

"I see," he said and pushed up his glasses. "You work here willingly, it seems."

"Yeah, it's amazing," she sighed happily. 

"You say that now," he replied in a low voice, looking kind of serious. "Have you seen the full extend of Orochimaru-sama's experiments yet?"

"No."

"You're in for a surprise, then," he said with a small smirk. "I should know. I was his right hand man for years."

"Was?"

"Yes. We're merely associates now. I've found something more worthwhile to do."

"Ah," she muttered and began to write down her findings. 

Leaving him standing there. He looked like a clever guy. Probably a fellow scientist, probably a med nin. It was easy to guess that he'd been doing her job in the past. What could possibly be more worthwhile than this? 

"What do you do?" She asked.

"I lead the orphanage in Konohagakure."

"Oh."

"It's where I belong," he said serenely. "That's where I can make a real difference."

"Good for you."

"Maybe you don't see it yet," he continued. "Or.. hm. Maybe you and I are different."

"Most likely," she replied and flipped a page in her notebook. "Was there something you wanted?"

"Orochimaru-sama calls for you. Meet him in the library."

"Where's that?" She looked up and shot him a questioning look. 

"Down the hallway, then left, then right and left again."

"Okay, thanks. Kabuto-kun."

He only smiled. Odd. Was he maybe...? Naomi tilted her head to the side. "Are you.. uh.. are you maybe.. related to him?"

"Me? No. It's a long story," he smiled and gestured at his face. "Perhaps I shall tell you another time."

"Alright. It was nice meeting you. I'll go now. Don't steal my research or consequences will be dire."

"Got it," he chuckled and stood up as well. "I was just about to leave anyway."

Naomi nodded at him and headed for the door. 

"Naomi-san," he called after her. 

She glanced at him over her shoulder. Now he was looking serious again. "Yes?"

"Be careful. Trusting him is like playing a rigged game," he said. 

She nodded once again and left. Sounded like those two had a lot of history. Not that she cared. Naomi just wanted to do her research in peace. She hadn't given her relationship with her employer much thought. As long as they remained on good terms it would be enough. Kabuto's warning was ever so slightly mystifying. Sure she was curious who Orochimaru really was, but not enough to ask any unwelcome questions. Said pale man was indeed waiting for her, lounging on a low plush chair with a book on his lap. With his hair in a loose ponytail he looked oddly androgynous. Naomi walked up to him and sat down in a chair besides him. 

"What are you reading?" She asked curiously and glanced at the open page. 

"I'd say a particularly boring scientific journal, but that would not deter you, would it?"

"No," she snorted and started to grin. "I love boring scientific journals."

He smiled and closed the book. "You've met Kabuto, yes?"

"Yeah, he's nice," she replied off-handedly and stared at him. "You, um."

He tilted his head to the side. Naomi swallowed. No probing questions, remember? She scolded herself and scratched her cheek as she glanced away.

"You called?"

"Yes. How was your latest experiment?"

"Weird. Who's the chap whose flesh I checked?" 

"Recently deceased. He was suffering from a rare disease."

"Chakra malabsorption," she concluded.

Orochimaru nodded. "As soon as he came into contact with chakra from anybody else he suffered injuries. He came to me begging me to find a cure."

"Oof," she said and rubbed her chin. "That's tough."

"Indeed. I was not successful," he admitted. "But he did provide excellent study material."

"Yes," she nodded. "Never seen anything like that before. It's truly remarkable how you find all these interesting subjects."

He blinked slowly. His grin widened ever so slightly. Naomi's brows furrowed in confusion.

"What?" She asked.

"Subjects," he repeated with a grin. "Not people?"

She shrugged and looked away. "Does the linguistic difference really matter to you?"

"No. I just can't help but notice when other people conflate those two terms. It happens so rarely."

Naomi just couldn't get a read on him. Now he was smiling contently at her as if she'd somehow passed yet another test. He was playing some sort of game and she was one of the pieces. Her eyes narrowed a little.

"Is there something specific you wanted from me? Otherwise I'd like to return to my laboratory," she said politely. 

He chuckled and put the book away on a nearby table. "Indeed. I've got something planned and I'd like your presence. Meet me in lab 34-C tomorrow morning. I think you'll find the experiment most fascinating."

"Now I'm really curious. Can I get a hint?"

"Maybe. Depends on the quality of your guess."

A game it is, then. Naomi leaned forward to rest her elbows on her legs and put the tips of her fingers together in front of her mouth. She let out a hum. 

"A human experiment."

"Are you trying to insult me?"

"Concerning the human genome," she plowed on.

"That's better."

Naomi stared unabashedly. Orochimaru returned her penetrating gaze without so much as a blink. Not a hint of self-consciousness. Perfectly okay with who and what he was and what he did. No remorse and no pretense. She liked that about him. She also liked how he didn't back down under scrutiny. Headstrong. Actually strong. Naomi grinned behind her hands. 

"Does it concern kekkai genkai by any chance?"

"Wrong," he replied casually. 

"Ah damn," she sighed and stood up. "I thought I had you there."

"Though also one of my areas of interest, this particular experiment serves a different purpose."

"Alright," she said and made a face once she'd turned around. 

Patience, where exciting experiments were concerned, was not one of her virtues. It haunted her the entire night, so when she got up in the first rays of dawn dark circles were under her eyes. Yet Naomi was in a great mood, practically vibrating with excitement as she got dressed and hurried to the laboratory he mentioned. Orochimaru's domain was markedly more tidy than hers. It also bore a strong resemblance to both, labyrinth and library. She made her way through rows upon rows of bookshelves after no one answered to her knocking and almost got lost twice before she found another door at the back of the room. 

"Enter," a voice called. 

It was sort of strange to hide the actual lab behind a library, but whatever. It was nearly dark in there, which gave the room a cavernous appearance. The only source of light were two tanks containing..

"Children?!" She gaped at the pale bodies suspended in liquid. 

Several tubes were connected to the bodies. Specifically to the navel, the mouth, nostrils and anus. Naomi approached the tanks open mouthed. She'd done a lot of morally questionable things, but this? 

"Is that doubt I see in your eyes?" Orochimaru asked silkily as he stepped from the shadows. 

She crossed her arms in front of her chest and bit the inside of her cheek. "I don't know yet. What is this?"

"These are the children I created from my own cells."

"You.. created them? So they're.. your children?"

"Basically. It has been quite fascinating to see them grow."

Naomi stared at them. Children. He wanted children. So he created them. From his cells. In test tubes. Suddenly she felt like laughing. Orochimaru's eyes narrowed slightly. 

"Is something funny?"

"N-no."

"Why do I get the feeling you're amused by this?" He asked cooly. 

Alright, get a grip. Naomi inhaled deeply and shoved the laughter back down her throat. She shook her head and averted her gaze back to the tanks. 

"Well, it's certainly unexpected," she said. "Definitely fascinating."

A prolonged silence followed her words that made her slightly nervous. So her amusement had struck a nerve. Great. 

"They look relatively old. How long have you been cultivating them?"

"The big one six years, the small one four," came the clipped reply. 

"Amazing," she murmured, staring at the children.

They looked exactly the same. It blew her mind that science could do something so complex as to create life from scratch. Orochimaru's research was clearly much further advanced than hers. The discoveries he made... It would take her decades to come up with something like this. Too long for a single lifetime. Not for the first time Naomi wished she could find a way to become immortal. Her shoulders dropped with a sigh.

"I'm so jealous," she complained. "You're way ahead of the curve. How long did it take you to develop the process?"

"A few decades."

"Huh?" She tilted her head towards him. "How old are you, exactly?"

"Guess."

At least some of the casually teasing tone returned to his voice. That didn't mean she was out of hot water yet. She squinted at the tall man. It was seriously difficult to tell. He didn't sport any wrinkles. If he said several decades, then...

"Over thirty," she hedged. 

"More," he said with a miniscule smile. 

"What?! Forty, then. At max."

"No. More."

"You gotta be kidding me!" Naomi exclaimed in shock and stared at him. "No way!"

"Physically your first guess would have been correct," he deigned to reveal. "That is the age of this host body. Mentally, however, I am far older."

"Host body? Are you saying.. that you found a way to transfer your soul, or spirit, into other bodies?"

"Indeed. It's somewhat of my speciality."

Naomi slapped a hand in front of her forehead. "Goddamn. I feel like I've been wasting my life in Amegakure! Meanwhile you've found a way to be immortal! I can't believe it!" 

"I am a genius," he stated uneccessarily. 

"Yes you are," she agreed miserably, which made him grin. 

"Don't take it too hard. You've done some impressive work with what limited means you had."

"What, like developing a cough medicine?" An aura of gloom surrounded her as she sank down on the floor and drew her knees up. 

Orochimaru chuckled. Naomi buried her face in her knees and sighed loudly. Amazing. How could she ever hope to compete with that? Unless she found a way to extend her natural lifespan there was no way to get on his level before she was old and grey. Her professional jealousy made the gears in her head turn. Transferring one's own soul into another body... that was an impressive technique. Unfortunately she was vain enough not to want to give up her body. There had to be another way. Naomi lifted her head and watched the children in the glowing liquid. Chakra was the answer to her question. The mysterious life energy that suffused everything. Surely if she managed to modify or gain large quantities of it, it could somehow be used for this purpose? 

"Hmm," she hummed. 

"What are you thinking about?"

"I'm sorry for earlier," she replied spontaneously. "It's just.. Eh, well, I guess it's easy for me because I'm a woman.. I just thought that before I resort to creating artificial life I'd rather have children the natural way. I didn't mean to offend you, Orochimaru."

"I have been a woman at times, yet I did not feel inclined to do as you say," he replied. 

"You.. oh. It's fine. No really, it's everybody's own choice," she shrugged. "Who's to say that this is not a viable alternative?"

"It remains to be seen how they turn out," he said. "Their physical development has been fine. I wonder about their mental development."

"Yeah," she agreed, staring at the tanks. "Though if they were made from your cells, it stands to reason to assume that they will share some of your traits. Just like natural children."

"Perhaps," he conceded. 

They watched the artificial children quietly for a few beats. This kind of hyper advanced science left her feeling deeply impressed. It stoked the flames of her ambition to study even harder. Naomi gripped her knees and furrowed her brows in determination. 

"How does it work? If your host body is different from your original one?"

"My soul overpowers the host body and its consciousness. It transforms it into something resembling my original form closely."

"Fascinating. What gave you the idea?"

"The desire for immortality," he said quietly. "My deepest desire is to learn all there is to learn. It's impossible in merely one lifetime."

"Yes," she agreed with a thoughtful look. "I know that feeling. It's a conundrum that I am facing myself. Our desires are similiar it seems."

"Hm," he hummed and regarded her. "So it would seem."

Naomi had a little more trouble meeting his stare unflinchingly, but she felt she owed it to him after all the scrutiny. His emotionless gaze seemed to dissect her every body part. Joints, skin, bones. It was a hard scientist's gaze. Not unfamiliar. Not unpleasant in its objective detachment. She wondered what he saw when he looked at her. An average looking young woman in a lab coat probably. Wearing a little too little clothing. She hadn't seen fit to change her outfit yet. Scrutiny. She never liked it. It made her nervous and her fingers itch for a scalpel. Naomi did not like feeling nervous, or any negative emotion at all. Lab equipment tended to suffer when that happened. Her right hand crept into her pocket under Orochimaru's watchful gaze. Naomi bit her lower lip and pressed the pad of her thumb against the wicked sharp blade. It hurt immediately and she felt her own hot blood run out of the wound, but the pain also served to calm her down and dull the nervous energy thrumming through her body. Slowly she withdrew her hand and glanced down at the long red streak running down her lower arm. 

"Hm," she hummed and lifted her arm. 

Naomi's expression was perfectly calm as she licked a stripe up her forearm, lapping up the stray blood. The metallic taste varied from time to time, which always told her whether she was eating enough iron containing foods. When her salvia came in contact with the cut it stung and burned. Unsanitary! The med nin part of her brain protested. Mmmh, the unstable part said. Orochimaru watched the whole thing like a hawk, forgoing any comment. She closed her eyes and snapped her fingers. Glowing green chakra flowed through her system, gathering in her thumb. The sting lessened instantly. She felt much better already and opened her eyes with a calm smile. 

"Where were we?" She asked innocently. "Ah yes. Common interests. I'd like to make a request in order to further my studies. I need a living subject."

Orochimaru's nostrils flared. He nodded once. Naomi's smile widened and she stood up. 

"Perfect! If you'll excuse me I will return to my lab now. There's much work left to do," she said merrily and rubbed her hands.

 

Not much time passed before she recieved her requested subject. Male, early thirties. Drugged to the gills and unresponsive. She hauled him up on a stone table and strapped him down, just to make sure. A blindfold was wrapped around his eyes. She lifted it with a finger and peeked underneath. Brown eyes, huge unresponsive pupils. She checked his pulse just to make sure he was still alive. Naomi let out a sigh and buttoned the top half of her coat up. Then she snapped on her goggles and picked up her instruments. Time for an operation. 

It was basic shinobi knowledge that five different chakra natures existed, concentrated in the human body at various points. Those so called chakra gates were naturally locked, but with practice and focus they could be unblocked. Most ninjas specialized in one nature they had an affinity for, but some could master up to three. Only a handful of shinobi had accomplished opening all five in known history. Naomi naturally had an affinity for water, being born in the wettest village on earth. She began the experiment by infusing her subject's water gate with her own water chakra. It appeared not to be the subject's affinity, since his water gate was blocked. When she forced her chakra in he seized once and his pulse dropped lower. Chakra system overload. Naomi was dismayed to find that she'd have to wait for the paralysis to wear off before her next test. Perhaps a smaller amount of chakra? More time? What she was trying to figure out was how other bodies reacted when infused with her particular chakra. Orochimaru's technique of overtaking other bodies was not attractive in her opinion, so she wanted to figure out a way to leech out other people's chakra and merge it into her own. More chakra = more life, that was her theory. 

In practice the process proved to be taxing and tedious. She needed a concrete jutsu to leech out chakra as opposed to a simple formless technique. Those took too long and drained her reserves, in opposition to filling them. Creating a jutsu to serve her purpose became a new challenge. Naomi put down her bloody scalpel and went to the sink to wash her hands. Then she ignored her subject and went to her desk. Hand signs. That was the base. She gnawed on a pencil trying to figure out the right order. Ninjutsu were not her forte. Never had been. She was so much better at genjutsu. 

"Ugh," she groaned and swirveled around on her chair. "Why does this have to be so hard, huh? Any advice?"

The subject remained unresponsive. Naomi's brows furrowed. She went over and grabbed his wrist. 

"Oh. Damn," she murmured. "No pulse? Come on, I still need you."

With a sigh she concentrated on her hands. Small bolts of electricity began to dance around her fingers. She'd frequently used it to shock patients' hearts back to life and that was her intention now. The man's body jerked violently against his bonds as she pushed down, onto his chest. No other reaction. She did it again and checked his pulse. No heartbeat. This chap was a goner. Bummer. Naomi grit her teeth and glared down at the unresponsive subject. Why could nothing go her way for once?! She balled her fists at her sides. She regarded the man's still heart on open display after she cut his skin away. The heart is capable of conducting every sort of chakra. She lifted her right fist, which by then was crackling with lightning chakra. 

"Damn you," she growled. "You were supposed to bring me a breakthrough! Bastard!"

She punched down on the heart with all the fury she could muster. It jumped several times as the lightning chakra crackled loudly on impact. As soon as she removed her bloody fist she saw the deep dent in the tissue and knew it was a lost cause. She lifted a shaking hand to her forehead and exhaled. Damn, but her temper once again got the best of her. Even so she could still feel annoyance winding through her veins like a snake. She needed another target before she inadvertedly destroyed her precious research. Naomi turned around and left her lab at a fast pace. Different strong emotions could be felt in different parts of the body. Right then, anger was making her fists hard and itching for something to punch. She knew there was a training room deeper inside the complex. 

Halfway there she reached into her lab coat. Long ago she taught herself a small trick, a jutsu to replicate scalpels indefinitely. The chakra strings came later, as a way to conserve chakra that would otherwise be wasted on new copies. A few teens were in the room, practicing on target dummies. She ignored them as she walked through the middle towards a free dummy at the back. Neither her bloody lab coat nor the drying blood on her knuckles were of any concern to her. The teens on the other hand regarded her warily. She fixed her gaze on the dummy and withdrew a scalpel. She held it between thumb and pointer finger. As she spread the rest of her fingers outward, two dozen copies of the same blade spread around her like a glinting halo, connected and suspended by faintly glowing thin threads. Her eyes narrowed. With an enraged roar she threw her arms towards the target, which rattled in its holding as it was perforated by the knives. Some even embedded themselves in the wall behind it. Her fingers twitched and the chakra strings tugged the weapons back. Disregarding the bends and dents, she did it again, relishing the splintering wood and cracking blades. What a magnificent way to release her rage! Naomi grinned in a most sinister way as she demolished the helpless dummy until it was nothing but a mess of broken wood. Once it was done the blades and strings dissipated into thin air and she stood there panting with a vague sense of satisfaction. Sweat coated her skin and made her hair stick to her face. Slow clapping made her glance over her shoulder.

"What a savage mauling. I'd hate to get on your bad side," Orochimaru commented with his usual smile. 

"I had to release a bit of steam," she said apologetically and turned around to face him. "Research goes slow today. My subject expired."

"That's a shame," he said casually, as if they were discussing the weather. "You want a new one, yes?"

"Preferably one that isn't drugged halfway to nirvana," she said dryly. "A slightly more.. resilient one, if you will."

"Are you sure that its screams would not be a distraction?"

"Of course not," she snorted. "What do you think I've been doing back home?"

"Developing a cough medicine," he parroted her words with a small smirk.

"And a non-intrusive operation technique," she deadpanned. "I planned to refine it to the point of being able to use it in combat, thus pain free. My subjects disagreed so I postponed the project."

Orochimaru chuckled. "My my, you are ruthless."

"Says you," she snorted with a small crooked grin. 

He raised a brow in amusement. "I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure, sure. Ugh, this smells. Do excuse me, I think I need a bath," she grimaced and walked past him. 

Naomi couldn't be certain, with the way every step echoed loudly in the training room, but she thought she heard him inhale deeply as she walked past. A pained grimace grew on her face. Ugh. Sweat and dried blood. Disgusting. Making such an unseemly appearance in front of her boss. How shameful. Once she was out of the room she discreetly sniffed her armpits to gauge how bad it was. Yeah, definitely time for a bath. 

The only drawback of her new home, in Naomi's opinion, was the bathroom. It was downright tiny and the bathtub had a rather coarse texture. Not to mention the odd and unsettling faucet shaped like a large coiled snake from whose open fanged mouth the water poured forth. There were two little wheels hidden besides the faucet, likely so as to not ruin the aesthetic. Figuring out how to get water that was neither ice cold nor scalding was a balance act that nearly pushed her to the brink of despair. Once it was full of steaming water she undressed and slid in with a wince. Too hot! She tried using water release to cool it down with litle success. At last she leaned back in the hard, uncomfortable tub and undid her bun. Long raven hair fell down to the middle of her back. Naomi sighed and slowly began to relax. Washing her mane in the tub was going to be her next problem. She eyed the faucet distrustfully. No way was she going to stick her head under that. So it would have to be a water rinse. For now, she simply enjoyed the way her tense muscles began to relax. Particularly her shoulders were uncomfortably hard. She reached up and massaged herself a little. 

"Must be the hours at the microscope," she muttered and tilted her head from side to side. 

The steam began to fill the tiny room, making it look like a small cloud was trapped in there. Naomi closed her eyes and let her mind wander. All in all she was satisfied with her current situation. Getting to experiment as much as she liked with no restrictions whatsoever was a blessing. A steady stream of subjects was awesome, too. All that bothered her was the slow progress of her current project. Figuring out a way to absorb chakra via a jutsu. A jutsu that as of yet was still on the drawing board. Leeching another person's water chakra via a reversal of the flow didn't yield any satisfying amounts. Certainly not enough to prolong her life. It was also annoying that she had to put all her other projects on hold because of this. Every day she woke up with yet another brilliant idea on her mind only to be forced to write it down for later. Of course she'd considered consulting Orochimaru for ideas, but the man was strangely elusive. She didn't even know where his office was in the large compound. It led her to think he didn't want to be found so she stopped bothering. Instead she took to studying the books in his libaries. A good lot of them were written in code or old fashioned and barely readable script. It was truly impressive how much knowledge he'd amassed. 

Naomi sighed and amused herself by drawing water from the tub up into her palm. If she wanted all of a person's chakra then she'd first have to be proficient in all the natures. Mastering them was a feat she'd never be able to accomplish. She wasn't that great of a kunochi. Naomi was perfectly aware of her failings. Sometimes she'd rather trade in part of her intellect and proficiency in chakra control for more mastery in ninjutsu and the natures. She glared at the coiled snake faucet. Her mood was darkening at the idea of giving up on her quest and settling for furthering her medical knowledge like she'd originally been doing. Giving up was something she loathed. It was basically admitting defeat in the face of an intellectual challenge. Unacceptable. The snake's eyes were odd. The coiled body was made of stone, but the eyes were glinting like they were made of glass. 

Naomi sighed. The entire lair was heavily snake themed. It was overall a bit too much. She grabbed a hold of her hair and drew it over both of her shoulders. There was no soap. She glanced around the bathroom with a small frown. Seriously? Who doesn't stock their guest bathrooms? She thought and started to pout. The prospect of having to dry her hair without having washed it first made her nose wrinkle with disgust. Perhaps there was somebody who could lend her some soap? More than enough young trainees with longer hair lived in the compound. One of them could surely help her. 

With a sigh she gripped the edges of the tub and stood up. The now lukewarm water sloshed against her legs. Wet hair covered her breasts. Almost immediately gooseflesh began to rise at the temperature difference. 

"Mouu," she complained softly. "This sucks. I just need some shampoo. It doesn't even have to be the expensive rose-infused stuff..."

Though she wouldn't complain if she had access to her favorite brand again. A bottle cost nearly five hundred ryo. Naomi wrapped a big towel around herself and a smaller one around her hair. Dripping water in her wake, she set out down the hallway and knocked on the first door she came across. It was unlocked. No one answered so she peeked inside. It was a broom closet. Her eyes narrowed into slits and she sighed at the heavens. 

"Haaaoo..."

Her search continued until a voice finally answered her knocks. Inside the room was a young teen girl in standard ninja garb. Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of Naomi.

"H-huh?" She stammered. "Is that you, Naomi-sama?"

"Eeeh?" Naomi squinted at her. Sama? "I just wanted to borrow some shampoo. Do you have any?"

"N-no, I'm afraid not. I only wash my hair with soap."

"Really?" Naomi eyed her dull, kind of frizzy hair and shuddered. "Okay. Bye."

She closed the door again. There was no way she'd let her beautiful hair end up like that! With a shake of her head she continued her search, absently holding onto her towel lest it slide down. Walking along the endless corridors raised a bunch of existential questions. Such as: Why was this damn place so huge?! What was behind the locked doors? Why did none of the Oto-nin place any value on haircare? Why was it so cold in here? Did they not have central heating? Her eyes narrowed. Was Orochimaru trying to save money on the electricity bills? Was that why it was so dimly lit with odd snake-shaped candleholders on the walls? Those things were getting on her nerves, so she stopped in front of one, raised a hand and flicked the candleholder right between the eyes. 

"Take that," she said with a satisfied smirk. 

What she didn't expect was for it to trigger a hidden mechanism that made the wall slide back. Naomi blinked at the secret tunnel behind the wall. Huh. It looked like it was hewn into a cliff. Shrugging, she tugged her towel up and walked in. The door slid shut behind her with a grating noise that sounded suspiciously like a hiss at one point. Ugh.

"Ugh," she said out loud and continued on her way. 

At the end of the tunnel was another door, which led into a huge cavernous room. Genuine stalagmites were hanging from the ceiling and all. Naomi's face scrunched up. Were the hanging ones stalagmites or stalactites? She could never remember the difference. A dozen of glowing blue screens lit the darkness, along with more damn snake candleholders. In front of the technological array sat none other than the one person who might be able to help her. 

"Hello?" She called and the person shifted. "Excuse me. Hello?"

The chair swirveled around, revealing a mildly intrigued looking Orochimaru. He eyed her appearance and raised a delicate brow. 

"How did you find this place?"

"Accident," she shrugged and made a face. "Listen, I need your help. You're my last hope, Orochimaru!"

"Oh?" He smirked. 

"I need to borrow some shampoo."

Silence. Orochimaru blinked slowly. Naomi held his gaze with a desperate expression. With a small sigh he stood up and walked towards her. Today he wore a white and blue yukata. She also noticed his bold statement tomoe earrings and approved of the style. 

"Come with me," he said calmly. 

"Oh thank god," she sighed and followed him out of the cave. "Why are you the only person who cares about their hair in this place?" 

"I don't know," he replied in an amused tone. 

"I have several questions," she said as they walked down the hallways side by side. 

"Is that so."

"It's pretty cold in here," she hedged and glanced at him sideways. 

"Have you considered getting dressed before you walk around?"

"Ha ha. Very funny," she complained and made a face. 

He chuckled. Naomi let out a sigh. She probably would never find that hidden passage again. Every hallway looked the same.

"You know what, this place needs a hall plan. This is a maze!" She said and gestured around them with one arm. "A complete death trap in case of a fire! That can't be legal."

"A lot of things are illegal," he replied easily and gave her an amused look. 

"I'm twenty," she informed him before she could think better of it. 

He let out a hoarse laugh. "I was thinking about human experimentation."

"Of course you were," she sighed. "Forget it."

"Ah, here we are," he said as they arrived in front of a plain wooden door. 

"That's your room?"

"Yes."

Naomi didn't follow him inside. It would not be proper to invade her boss' personal space. Workplace relations, she thought. She'd attended a briefing on the subject once, back in Amegakure. What it boiled down to was walking the fine line between closeness and professional distance between collegues. Naomi had a hell of a lot of respect for the man professionally. He was a brilliant scientist, complete with the eccentricity that came with it. Hence the whole snake theme. Personally, she wasn't sure what to make of him. He had a wicked sense of humor and acted easygoing. It was all permeated by a certain sense of danger, though. He was not a man to be crossed, that much was certain. A short while later he returned with a plain plastic bottle in his hand. She bowed quickly before she accepted it and sighed with relief.

"Aaah thank you so much!" She said as she flicked the cap open and sniffed curiously. "Lavender?"

"I like the smell," he replied. 

"Mh, it's good," she agreed and grinned as she looked up at him. "You're a lifesaver! I owe you one. Oh, by the way?"

"Hm?" He asked. 

Naomi peered intently into his eyes. She'd been wondering about them for a while now. The pupils never dilated. 

"Are those contacts?" She asked bluntly. 

"....No."

"Okay. They're really pretty, you know? Your eyes."

Naomi grinned brightly and walked away with her prize in her hand. Now she could finally finish this. She hated interrupting tasks or routines more than anything, which was why she didn't get dressed after leaving the tub. She was not done with her bath yet! Her hair was still woefully unwashed! Even though the water was now barely lukewarm she got back in the tub and started scrubbing. It was unfairly difficult. The most unsatisfying wash she'd had in a while. Her scalp itched in places and she suspected that some of the shampoo remained in her hair at the end. Fed up and shivering, she twisted her wet hair up into two big buns on either side of her head and went to bed. 

It wasn't a bad look. Kind of messy with several strands sticking out at the sides. Naomi decided she liked it and left it as it was. As long as it didn't interfere with her experiments it was fine. Speaking of which, after reading a few highly interesting papers Naomi began to think of a new way to achieve her goal. If she was too shitty at ninjutsu to extract chakra, perhaps she could build a machine that could do the trick? She got to work, tinkering day and night until she fainted. It was quite a mess since she smacked her forehead on something sharp. A Chunin sent by Orochimaru to inquire about some research found her lying in a puddle of blood and promptly sounded the alarm in a panic. It was rather unneccesary, as she calmly informed the pale young teen. 

"I'm perfectly fine," she said, ignoring the drying blood that coated half of her face. 

"U-um, but Naomi-sama! You were lying on the floor! I thought you were dead!"

"Nonsense," she tsked and then repeated her words to be heard of the shrill ringing of the alarm. "Shut that noise off!"

"I can't!" He yelled miserably. "It can only be shut off who's got authorized access to the security system!"

Naomi sighed. She had no such authorization. So that meant Orochimaru or some of his henchmen that were higher up in the pecking order. Running footsteps in the hallway made her sigh again. She put her hands on her hips and frowned when three unfamiliar shinobi threw the door open with matching tense expressions. 

"What's wrong?" One of them demanded. 

"Nothing."

"Why are you bleeding then?" Another demanded. 

The older Oto-nin were apparently not as reverent as the smaller fish where she was concerned. 

"I tripped," she yelled. "Turn off that infernal noise!"

One of them went over to a keypad in the wall, which she'd been ignoring until now, and slid a small card through a reader. The alarm stopped. Naomi glanced down at her coat and groaned. The upper right half was stained with blood. She'd have to wash it again. For the sixth time this week. She turned around and went to search for a tissue or something to mop up the mess. The four shinobi didn't move. She glanced at them over her shoulder.

"Shoo," she said. 

They didn't move. The younger shinobi moved as if to leave, but hesitated when the others remained standing. 

"Are you certain you're alright? You just hit your head?" One of them demanded. 

A bit too insistently. Naomi was already annoyed at the mess she made, at herself for fainting and now at those disrespectful idiots. They eyed her as if they thought she was stupid. On her list of things she hated, being underestimated ranked on place number four, above interrupting routines, which was level five. When they refused to go away it made her annoyance spike abruptly. She slowly turned around with a big, flat smile. 

"Will you guys be missed if you disappear?" She asked casually. 

"H-huh?" 

They flinched when a bunch of scalpels embedded themselves in the wall behind them. The quartet looked around with startled looks as they started to bleed from various shallow cuts. A halo of glinting knives surrounded her. Naomi inclined her head and smiled darkly. 

"I need peace and quiet to work. Do you understand?" She asked with fake friendliness. "Leave."

"Understood."

Now they didn't hesitate and quickly filed out of the lab. Naomi inhaled deeply through her nose. The iron smell of blood clung to her. Come to think of it, she was starving. She scratched at her cheek, where the drying blood itched, and regarded the dark crust under her fingernail. 

"Steak," she said with a definite nod. "Rare." 

After cleaning herself up and dumping her coat in the bathtub to soak, Naomi set out to find a kitchen. With limited success. All they had here was a cantina where they served various goops. She stared in horror at the metal containers full of various pastel colored sludges. There was no way that stuff was healthy. The teens eating it at the tables looked anything but thrilled. The cook, a massive woman in a filthy blue apron with wild blonde hair that was so curly it obscured her eyes, loomed behind the food display with a gargantuan ladle in her meaty fist. 

"Excuse me?" Naomi said with a winning smile.

"Whatcha want."

"Is there another kitchen anywhere in this place?"

"Why? You dun' like me food?" The woman growled threateningly. 

"Calling this stuff food is a bit of an exaggeration," Naomi retorted, which earned her an angry snort. "Where do the higher ups eat?"

"Aint gonna tell ye. Now scram!"

Her left eye twitched. Her stomach growled. She eyed the colorful goops. 

"Steak," she said softly. "I want steak."

The huge cook's face reddened with rage. She reminded her more and more of a pig. Naomi hated mushy food. On her list it was on level three. She turned around and walked over to the nearest populated table. When the young shinobi saw her they straightened up attentively. Who told them to act this way? 

"Yo. Where can I get some real food?"

"Um..," a girl spoke up hesitantly. "The Jonin and Orochimaru-sama's direct subordinates eat in a seperate dining room."

"Where's that?"

"I-I don't know."

"It's further in the complex," a boy supplied. "Near the forbidden area."

"What?"

"Orochimaru-sama's laboratories, his living quarters and private rooms are forbidden to us."

"Makes sense. Thanks guys," she said and walked off. 

She heard several relieved sighs and whispered comments behind her back. 

"-that really her?"

"Yeah I'm sure-"

"Why-"

"Don't know."

Naomi shook her head. Just what were they saying about her? She didn't know any of them since she almost never left her lab. What Orochimaru did with his underlings was none of her concern. Why he founded his own hidden village still eluded her. She couldn't imagine him teaching a class. In fact, the very idea made her chuckle. Those kids would never be able to keep up with him. She rounded a corner and found that this hallway somehow looked different. It was slightly darker than the last and also cooler. Her footsteps echoed off the stone walls. Her stomach growled angrily. Finally she happened upon a set of double doors, which led into a large room that strongly resembled the cantina, but overall looked nicer. A lot less people were in there, mostly older followers. The three idiots that bothered her in her lab were there as well. Once she entered they looked down at their plates with utmost fascination. She walked up to the counter and stared down the cook.

"I want steak," she said and held up her hand when his mouth opened under a massive grey moustache. "If you tell me right now that you don't have it I'm going to murder someone."

"Comin' right up," he muttered darkly and shuffled away. 

"Great!" She chirped and sat down at the table with the idiots, right next to the tallest one. "Sup."

"Naomi-sama," they greeted her politely. 

She grinned as she noticed they were avoiding eye contact. "How come you guys responded to the alarm?"

"We're the designated first responders because we're med nin."

"Ah?" She raised a brow. "Who trained you?"

"Orochimaru-sama himself," one of them said proudly. 

"Didn't know he was a med nin, too."

"Not officially, but he's a capable healer."

"So you don't have any training by an actually qualified teacher," she concluded. "Figures."

They looked scandalized at that. "Are you saying that Orochimaru-sama isn't-"

"What I'm saying is that you shouldn't call yourselves med nin if you never had official training," she corrected as she watched the cook hurry over with a steak on a plate. "Might get you in legal trouble."

"Hmph."

"As if that'd ever be a concern."

"What makes you say that?" The most level headed of the lot asked. "Are you qualified?"

"Very," she sighed and closed her eyes in enjoyment as she inhaled the steak smell. "I'm actually a med nin, which is why I know what I'm talking about. Take it as friendly advice."

"Really? We thought you were purely a scientist," he said and shot his comrades stern looks. "Please forgive our rudeness."

"It's cool," she said through a full mouth. "Mhh, oh god. Mhhh! This is better than sex."

The trio shot each other looks and shifted uncomfortably before they resumed eating their own food. Naomi's mood lifted instantly as she chewed her food. She wasn't even mad at them anymore. In fact, the steak was so good that her mood turned downright jovial and she decided to tease them a little. Orochimaru's underlings all had sort of pinched, overly serious looks about them. They could use a little entertainment, right? A moan of pleasure escaped her when she chomped down on another bite. She held the fork long enough for some of the delicious meat juice to run down her arm. Naomi hummed contently as she licked it up and smirked at the way they blushed. They had to be around her own age, maybe slightly younger. All of them were very pointedly avoiding looking anywhere in her direction. 

"Mh so good," she moaned around another bite. 

One of them reached up to loosen his collar a little, another swallowed hard. The third one lifted his glass and took several gulps. Naomi finished her steak with a big grin, feeling more energetic than ever. On the way back to her lab she only got lost twice and stopped once in a bathroom to drink some water from the faucet. Something felt different once she switched on the lights in the dark lab. She looked around, but nothing seemed to be out of order. 

"Hm," she hummed and routinely inspected the stacks of her notes for signs of tampering.

It was a habit borne out of necessity. Back home in Amegakure her siblings had always rifled through her things until she packed up and created a secret lab. Her younger sister Asuka even tried to publish one of her stolen papers as her own. It contained a really important thesis on how to deal with a disease known as "Chakra Corruption", which had demanded many victims on the battlefields in the past. It took her two years to come up with and countless test subjects until she figured out how to cure it. Asuka was the first to pay the price for her trespass. After she'd made an example of her, Naomi's other siblings became hesitant to go through her stuff. It also further deteriorated her relationship with her family, but that was besides the point. 

"Hm," she said again once she found everything in order. "What's going on?" 

Why did it feel like she was being watched? Naomi frowned and spun around on her heels, doing a full 360 degree turn. Nothing. 

"Have I finally lost it?" She wondered aloud. "Or is it just vitamin D deficiency?"

A hoarse chuckle answered her musings. Not much later, Orochimaru appeared almost out of nowhere. He'd been leaning against her desk, but for some reason she hadn't seen him. A concealing jutsu? He walked towards her with a calm expression. She could never read his strange eyes. Naomi tilted her head up with a questioning look. He looked down at her. 

"Where is that report I've requested? Of your latest blood analysis."

Naomi blinked. "Oh. That."

She totally forgot. Busy as she'd been tinkering and fainting. By now the sample had to be all coagulated and dry. Orochimaru's expression never wavered so he had to realize as much. She swallowed hard. Oops.

"What have you been doing? Building some machine, scaring and injuring some of my more competent minions," he chided. "I'm disappointed in you, Naomi."

"Urk!" She croaked when his hand suddenly shot out and grabbed her by the throat. 

He pinned her against the wall by her neck and his grip was like iron. Holy fuck, he was strong! Even though he looked kind of waifish and frail. He leaned in and it was far more threatening than anything he'd ever done before. 

"Perhaps you need a reminder of your situation? You work for me. When I ask you to do something it becomes your number one priority, understand?"

Naomi had trouble getting air into her lungs, so she nodded mutely. He knew what he was doing. The pressure on her windpipe hurt like hell. 

"You're free to do whatever little side projects you may have once you've done your job." His eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't like it when my orders are ignored. Or did you perhaps foolishly mistake them for requests?"

Naomi's face flushed as she struggled to breathe. Suddenly she felt his fingers touch her abdomen. Sensing danger she focused and immediately started to pool her chakra in the area. Pre-emptive healing, another brilliant idea she'd had at some point. Sure enough, he began to dig in. The pressure became downright painful as she felt him press down on her guts. Was he trying to-

"Aaaaaghh!" She coughed wildly when she felt the skin start to tear. "AaaaAAAA STOP!"

Orochimaru smirked at her and didn't stop. The maniac. Just because she forgot to analyze one blood sample! Ah, but shouldn't she have known? After all they were rather similiar. Her face became a pained grimace as he dug his hand into her gut. 

"M-motherfucker," she hissed as she felt blood run down her belly. 

"Watch your language," he replied silkily as he studied her expression. "I wonder if pain gets through that thick skull of yours? You feel that, right?"

"AAAAH!" She yelled when he twisted his hand ever so slightly in her guts. "Goddamit stop!"

Her entire body grew weak once the shock started to set in. Fuck. Fucking motherfucker. What was he thinking? Giving the most competent medic in the whole place a horrible flesh wound?! Even with pre-emptive healing, sealing the tear back up was going to be tricky. She glared at him. Darkness was creeping in at the edges of her vision as her body wanted very much to collapse. The lack of air was getting to her, too. He looked perfectly calm, as if it wasn't anything special to dig around in another person's innards. It probably wasn't to him. Suddenly the urge to laugh hysterically started to bubble up inside her. What an absurd situation. I'm probably insane, she thought with amusement. He glanced between her eyes with something akin to intrigue. 

"What..an...unusual...way... to get.. penetrated," she rasped and watched his brows rise in surprise at the snarky comment. "Haa...haa.. fuck... hahaha."

Naomi laughed. It bubbled up from inside her and didn't stop. Her entire body was shaking with laughter. Orochimaru's grip around her throat loosened and she seized the chance to draw in some much needed air in between fits of laughter. She sunk to the floor and put a hand on the sizeable hole in her gut. Still laughing she looked up at him. Orochimaru wasn't smiling anymore. In fact he looked sort of lost, as if he didn't know how to react at all. She'd long since gotten used to work under pressure, to not let her limbs get shaky from the adrenaline rush. Green chakra gathered on her palm and started to mend the hole. With her free palm she wiped at her eyes. 

"Hahaha, godammit. We're pretty crazy, you and I," she told him with a huge grin. "I've decided I like you."

"How odd," he said tonelessly. 

"Hey, can I give you a nickname? Orochimaru is just too long. I've been thinking 'Orochi-kun', but that's sort of meh. You're not insulted by that, are you? Anyway, how about something short? Like 'Oro-kun'. It rolls off the tongue. What do you think, eh?"

"A nickname?" He asked incredulously. "Nobody's ever given me a nickname."

"Then it's settled," she said with a nod. "Oro-kun it is."

"You will not call me 'Oro-kun'," he said with furrowed brows.

His fingers flexed. Naomi eyed them. Long, elegant fingers. She didn't fancy a second hole in her gut. It was almost mended. Naomi frowned. When she worked on others it never took that long. She had to pay attention in order to make sure it healed seamlessly and without scars. Once her abdomen was restored she plucked at her broken mesh shirt with a sigh. Then she stood up to face him. 

"Why not? It's short and sweet."

"I'm neither," he replied instantly. 

Naomi smirked. His eyes narrowed. "Was that a jo-"

"Do I need to teach you another lesson?" He asked with a small, dangerous smile. 

"No, please don't," she said and held up her hands. "I'm gonna hand in assignments on time from now on! Lesson learned."

Naomi wondered if her neck would be bruised tomorrow. A strange part of her hoped so. It came out of nowhere, so unexpectedly that her eyes widened and she froze. 

"W-what?" She muttered and touched her aching throat. "Whoa."

In fact nothing about her ordeal left her with any ill feelings towards him. Orochimaru watched curiously as she sank down into a crouch, surrounded by an aura of gloom. 

"I'm insane," she concluded mournfully. "Oro-kun, I'm actually insane."

"I told you not to call me that," he replied. 

"By the way," she said and tilted her head up with a baleful stare. "You should fire that fat cook. She's feeding your guys pig slop."

"It's powdered power food. Loaded with all nutritients and minerals required. The aesthetic of the food was not one of my criteria when I created it."

"You did this?!" She glared at him. "Oro-kun, how could you?!"

"It's the perfect solution. Easy to make and it lasts forever. You only need to add hot water and then you have a nutritious meal," he said defensively. 

"Oh yeah?" She asked belligerently and glared at him as she stood up. "Do you eat it, too?!"

"I have no need for food or drink anymore," he said and halfway turned away. 

"Oh, that's actually pretty interesting. How did you do that?" She asked with wide eyes. 

"It's this body I aquired four years ago." 

"So it's special? Who did it belong to?"

"An artificial human." 

"Noooo. No way," she drawled incredulously and shook her head slowly. "That's amazing. How'd you get a hold of that? Huh?"

"It's a long story," he said and glanced at her. "I shall provide another sample to you. I want the results instantly."

"Yeah sure," Naomi sighed and let her shoulders drop. 

No freaking way. So he wasn't only quasi immortal, but also above basic human needs like food?! That was the closest any human had ever come to being a god. Once he left she sat down heavily on her desk chair and buried her face in her hands. By comparison her achievements paled. None of her experiements had helped her on the quest for immortality. Three months she'd been working here and had nothing to show for it. She glanced at her drawing board with the forgotten jutsu ideas scrawled on, then at her machine. Then down at her palms. Pointless. She balled her fists and slammed them on the dark wooden surface of her desk. Not soon after a messenger arrived with a blood sample clutched in his fist. She hurriedly took it and pinched the top of the vial between two fingers. The fool! 

"Go!" She barked and eyed the dark red blood with worry. 

The heat from his hand might've been speeding the coagulation process! She hurried to her microscope and got to work. It was partially clotted, but most of the blood was still good. In the middle of swapping out sliders she accidentally cut her finger and dropped a slide. 

"Fuck!" She cursed and squeezed the cut. 

More blood dribbled out and then she desinfected it before concentrating a small point of green chakra in there. As she watched it mend her skin, her expression suddenly lit up. 

"HEUREKA!" She lifted her finger into the air with a triumphant cry. "That's it!"

Why stray into different subjects when she should be focusing on what she was good at!? Medical jutsu was the answer! She slammed her hand into her palm and grinned. Then she hastily wrote a report for Orochimaru and since she was in such a great mood went to deliver it herself. By then she knew his biggest lab where he usually was to be found. True enough, he was doing something including several glass vials and a bunsen burner. Naomi hummed to herself and merrily walked over to him. 

"Hey, what are you doing Oro-kun?"

He glanced at her, then the report paper. "Results?"

"An uncomfortable amount of white blood cells. Leukemia?"

"Correct. What else?"

"Uh, some sort of blue stuff? Little blue bacteria perhaps. Grew fast as hell when fed with sugar. Is the patient dead, by any chance?"

"Dying," he replied in a bored tone and returned to his experiment. "I'll read it later."

"Was it a test?" She asked with a knowing smile. "What is that stuff?"

"A failed experiment. Too aggressive," he muttered as he mixed two different liquids. 

"Mh, better luck next time," she said and left him to it. 

When she walked past a large tank she caught sight of her reflection for the first time in months. And promptly stopped. Huh. Her old outfit didn't really suit her anymore. She tugged at the broken mesh shirt before she turned from side to side. Unfortunately it looked like a shopping trip was in order. 

"Hey, I've got some errands to run, mind if I leave for a while?" She called in his direction. "Just a day or so."

"What are you planning?" He asked and actually turned around. 

"Oh, nothing important," she said with a grin and put her hand on her hips. "What, are you worried?"

"No," he replied flatly. "I'd like to know where my subordinates are at all times."

Naomi sighed. "I need new clothes, alright? This just won't do anymore. So I need to go shopping."

"I will send somebody with you."

"What? Why?"

"Think of it as security," he replied with a smirk and turned around again. 

Naomi made a face at his back. The guy he sent with her had spiky bright brown hair, green eyes and a nervous smile. He was a Chunin at least, she guessed. Very polite and formal. 

"Lighten up," she told him. "I don't bite. Hard."

He laughed nervously. They were halfway to the next bigger settlement in the Land of Sound, which was the former capital. Before Orochimaru invaded and claimed it for himself. Her guard dog's name was Takumi and he was nineteen. That much he'd said during his introduction. 

"That's good to know, Naomi-sama."

"Drop the suffix! Why do you people always call me that?" She asked with a laugh.

"We only heard that Orochimaru-sama invited a brilliant famous med nin to his village," he explained with a faint blush. "Um.. Since you have your own lab and you were seen talking casually with the master it was assumed that.. um.."

"Huh?"

"You're his guest and we're to treat everyone above our own rank with respect," he hurried to say. 

"Ah. Well, no need for that. Just call me Naomi," she said with a big smile. 

"Um, if... if you're sure," he said and blushed some more.

Aww. He couldn't even meet her eyes. Naomi laughed and shook her head. The capital of the Land of Sound was rather small-ish, but she spotted some bigger stores right away. At first she only wanted a new mesh shirt. Then she considered that summer was on the wane and it was already pretty cold in the compound. So a winter outfit was needed as well. They had a lot of cute outfits on display. Her pace slowed down gradually and Takumi's arms got loaded with more and more shopping bags. At least he didn't seem to mind. Naomi actually started to enjoy herself, mixing various clothes together. Seeing how bored Takumi looked when he thought she wasn't looking, she decided that he should have some fun as well. She was caring like that. 

"Hey Takumi-kun," she called out of the changing room.

"Yes?"

She opened the curtain and presented her current outfit: A short black skirt, purple crop top with a high collar and mesh shirt underneath. 

"What do you think?" She asked with a grin.

"Um," he said and stared at her legs while his cheeks grew red. "It's um. Nice."

"Just nice? Then I'll have to do better," she said and drew the curtain shut, laughing quietly to herself. 

After all, Naomi did enjoy the looks. She picked a loose, extremely short grey top that showed her underboobs. Or would, if she wasn't wearing a bra. Just for this piece she'd actually consider going without for once. Then she grabbed a pair of black hotpants. With a mischievous grin she eyed her appearance in the mirror. Uh-huh. Highly impractical. Good thing she was a medic. She cocked her hip to the side and stretched her arms over her head. Ridiculous. She snorted at her reflection before she turned around and opened the curtain again.

"How about this?" She asked and tried to stop her lips from twitching. 

"I-it's um," he stammered and flushed beet red. A trickle of blood ran from his nose. 

Naomi tilted her head to the side and smiled. He made a sort of choking sound and turned around abruptly. 

"Do you like it?" She asked teasingly. 

"I-it's.. nice," he replied weakly. "I mean. Really nice."

"Ah that's better. Hm, it would probably be rather impractical, though," she mused and drew the curtain shut again. 

But perhaps with added cover from bandages? Naomi tossed both items on the "Keep" pile with a grin. Per se, getting her own lab and free living space was more than enough payment for her services, but she also recieved a decent salary from Orochimaru. As such she had no scruples about blowing it all on clothes. Poor Takumi was barely visible under the mountain of bags he carried at the end of her shopping spree. He was pretty cute, but a bit too timid for her liking. So when they were back and he put down the bags in front of her room with a relieved sigh, she took one of his hands in both of her own. 

"Thank you for your help today, Takumi-kun," she said with a big smile. 

Takumi blushed and glanced away while rubbing the back of his head. "My pleasure, Naomi-sama."

"Ah! I told you to drop the suffix," she chided him gently and squeezed his hand. 

"R-right," he replied and sighed a little before he smiled back. 

Naomi's grin widened. That smile looked much better on him. She leaned up spontaneously and placed a quick kiss on his cheek. Then she drew back and released his hand. He'd totally frozen up and blushed deeply. 

"N-Naomi!" He exclaimed in shock and touched his cheek.

"It's a reward for carrying those heavy bags," she laughed and scooped said bags up in her arms. 

She kicked the door closed behind her and chuckled to herself. Takumi had looked completely dumbstruck. Maybe it was mean, teasing him like that when she had no real interest in him. Her good mood and excitement had simply gotten the best of her. Naomi hummed to herself as she set to the task of washing her new stuff. It took a while. When her hands were completely wrinkly and a mountain of soggy clothes littered the floor she sat back on her haunches and sighed. At least the individual pieces weren't heavy. The bathroom was definitely too small to dry it all, so she hung it up on chakra threads inside her lab. 

Naomi figured the best place to start was meditation. It certainly helped her sharpen her focus. The idea she had in mind was so simple it was a miracle it hadn't occured to her sooner. Reversing medical jutsu, that was. Specifically the chakra exchange method she developed for curing Chakra Corruption. Only instead of draining corrupted chakra to replace it with her own, she intended to drain perfectly normal chakra. So simple! Now she only needed a suitable test subject. She tapped her lower lip and tilted her head to the side. Would Oro-kun still be awake at this hour of the night? She knew next to nothing about his habits. Well, only one way to find out. She got up and headed to his lab. 

"Knock knock," she said loudly in front of the door. 

"Who's there?"

Naomi grinned broadly. Awake and playful. Better than expected. "Room service!"

"Come in." 

She peeked through a crack in the door and spotted him still busy with an experiment. Grinning broadly, Naomi decided to have a little bit of fun. She got on her tiptoes and crept up on him. 

"Was there something you wanted?" He asked and turned around abruptly, just when she was within reach. 

"Niiyaaah!" She squeaked and quickly drew both hands back with an innocent face. "You startled me! How mean!"

"What are you doing sneaking around?" He asked with an amused look. "Was your trip successful?"

"Oh yeah! Takumi-kun was a great help!" She said with a happy grin. "He's so sweet and carried all my bags!"

"Is that so."

"Oh yeah! Hey, hey can you assign him to me? Like as my assistant?" She asked eagerly. 

Orochimaru looked away with a neutral expression. "I'll consider it."

"Great! So what are you doing?" She asked and tried to peek over his shoulder. 

"That? It's nothing important," he said dismissively and turned back around.

After turning the bunsen burner off he stood up. Naomi tried to catch a glimpse of his desk by leaning to the side before she pouted up at him. 

"Spoilsport," she muttered.

He reached towards her and Naomi blinked curiously as the fight left her. He tugged on a strand of hair sticking out of her left bun. 

"Your hair needs a wash," he said and tsk'ed disapprovingly. 

"Eeehh?!"

"It's dull and grimy."

"A-ack," she gasped as the color drained from her. "Total K.O.!"

"Did you not use the shampoo I lent you?" He asked with a small smile. 

"Yeah I did, but those bathtubs are hardly suited for people with long hair! And I don't trust those weird faucets enough to stick my head under them!" She pouted. "It's too difficult! How do you do it?!"

"It's a matter of technique."

"Ha! That's what she said!" Naomi slapped her thigh and laughed at her own joke. 

Orochimaru let out a beleaguered sigh. "Don't tell me you need help washing your own hair?"

"Eh?" She paused mid-laugh and blinked up at him. "Help?"

"Yes," he replied simply. 

Naomi paused and considered it. Was he seriously offering his help or was she hearing things? Would he.. would he actually bother himself or would he sent a girl to help her? Naomi bit the inside of her cheek and glanced up at him from under her lashes. 

"Um.. I guess it would help a lot," she mumbled and pushed the tips of her index fingers together. 

"Of course it would."

So that's how she found herself in the awkward situation of sitting in her bathtub, covered by a massive amount of bubbles and foam, while Orochimaru himself knelt behind the tub. 

"Um," she said and glanced at him over her shoulder. 

"Hm?" He hummed as he poured a walnut sized amount of shampoo in his palm.

"Nothing," she muttered and stared at the faucet on the other side of the tub. 

"Wet your hair."

She ducked into the mess of foam and underwater. Then she leaned back hesitantly. Her back straightened in surprise when one of his hands grabbed a hold of her shoulder and pulled her back against the rim of the tub. 

"Relax."

"Sure."

She felt the shampoo tricke on top of her head and held her breath when he started massaging it into her scalp. Her heart thumped painfully once and a shiver ran down her spine. 

"A-ah," she sighed and tilted her head back. "Ahhnn. O-Oro-kuuun..!"

"Hmm?"

"You have magic hands," she breathed and closed her eyes. "It feels so.. good.. aah."

Pleasure rolled through her in waves. Naomi melted against the bathtub and sighed in delight. Inch by inch he massaged her entire scalp, starting at the hairline and going backwards slowly. If she wasn't mistaken it was even loosening her shoulders just because it felt so good. Especially when he rubbed behind her ears. That was really something else. It made her purr. 

"Ahhh you're the best.. This is.. amazing..," she breathed and tilted her head back in an attempt to glance at him. 

Quite unexpectedly he balled a fist in her hair and gently, but firmly forced her to lower her head. It caused a strangely fluttery excited reaction somewhere in the pit of her stomach and made the breath stutter in her throat. That was how Naomi discovered that she liked having her hair pulled. Suddenly he did it again, pulled her head to the right and making her bare the left side of her neck. Gooseflesh rose along her arms when something soft and warm touched the oversensitive skin there. He inhaled deeply. His nose, she thought dimly. Is he.. 

"Are," she started and swallowed hard. "Are you smelling me?"

"Your pulse is jumping," he murmured in a low voice that sent shivers down her spine and tightened his grip. 

Naomi exhaled shakily. Her brain was kind of fuzzy. She tilted her head a little further without prompting. 

"Do you want to bite me?" She murmured with her half-lidded gaze fixed on the snake faucet.

"I.. want.." His voice sounded soft, almost confused as he trailed off.

Without warning he dunked her head underwater. Naomi's eyes widened and she struggled against his grip, spluttering from the water that got into her lungs. Her eyes stung as she'd gotten soap into them and her scalp burned from the rough treatment. Was he trying to drown her?! When she felt close to passing out his grip suddenly loosened. Naomi immediately straigtened and started to cough wildly, wiping at her stinging eyes.

"Ah! What- what the!" She cursed in between gasps. 

Once she could open her eyes again she looked around blinking frantically, but he was already gone. Freaking lunatic! Here she thought they were having a moment! Naomi shook her head and started to rinse out her hair. If that was how he reacted to a bit of harmless flirtation... Naomi pouted. It was obvious that he didn't appreciate her advances, so there wouldn't be a repeat of that for sure. She felt so stupid for thinking he almost.. Whatever! Her lower lip wobbled a bit as she forcefully wrung her hair out. 

*~~*

Orochimaru felt the need to destroy something pound behind his temples. How? How could he have been so foolish? He fled into his lab and locked the door. Then he stalked over to a desk and swept everything off of it with an enraged shout. The lamp shattered on the floor, loose pages and reports fluttered through the air. It wasn't enough. His teeth itched for something to bite into. Just like back then. It was just like back then. Why'd she have to go and open her stupid mouth? He slammed both fists on his desk and grit his teeth in frustration. It was not just a simple question, but a stab into an old wound. An old hurt that he buried deep in a forgotten corner of his mind. From a time long past when he was young and foolish, still bound to Konoha and his old comrades. 

He'd always been eyed warily for his looks and brilliant mind, but what people never seemed to realize was that he'd been a normal teenage boy, too. He'd had wants and desires like any other guy his age. There had been a girl he'd had an eye on for a while and when she finally agreed to go out with him he'd actually felt grateful. Girls in particular eyed him with distrust. The majority of them were afraid of snakes. So when he finally had his first date he felt so excited. She was extraordinarily beautiful. Smart, too. A member from a different team who had a bit of a bad girl reputation. They watched a movie, had diner at the ramen restaurant and he even showed her his favorite spot to stargaze. It was a spot only he knew, or so he thought. He'd wanted to kiss her then. 

Orochimaru kicked his desk chair across the room, where it slammed into another desk with a loud crash. The memory of shame and self-loathing was still strong, even decades after the fact. When he'd leaned in the girl's face scrunched up and his heart had abruptly sunk into his feet. He'd drawn back, blushing badly and grit out an apology. She'd laughed loudly into his face. 

"Ewww! No way! You can't be serious! Like I'd ever kiss you, snake boy! Ewwwww! Guys, can you believe it?!"

To his endless horror and mortification her teammates then emerged from their hiding spots. They too were howling with laughter. It cut him down to the marrow. He never wanted to feel this humiliated ever again. The fires of rage and hatred charred his heart black as he fled. Never again, he swore to himself. The shame of being tricked and humiliated so badly burned like acid. The pain didn't lessen and he became convinced it would only continue to vex him until he eradicated the source of it. 

Orochimaru followed her and her team on a mission once, shortly before he went rogue, and waited until she left her comrades to wash herself in a small pond. The sight of her pale skin in the moonlight had stayed his hand at first, but the pain caused by her slight was stronger. He'd thrown a needle laced with paralyzing poison at her and when she couldn't move anymore he'd gone over and looked in her eyes as he drowned her, right along with his useless feelings. Love -as he told Tsunade once, a few days after she lost Kato Dan- was just pain waiting to register. His experience had thoroughly cured him of any desire for female companionship.

Orochimaru glanced at the door. He should go back and finish what he started, but his feet refused to move. His throat was tight and his stomach clenched in a knot. To his infinite dismay the emotion causing it was apprehension. An irrational worry that this was just another joke at his expense. There was no reason to worry, as he reminded himself. She was nothing. Just another underling. An underling with a fascinating expanse of soft pale skin. The memory alone was enough to make him swallow. And the smell. His nostrils flared. His hands needed something to hold onto, to push down on until this pathetic affliction drowned. 

 

**~~**

 

No samples arrived the entire week. Naomi was starting to get worried. Did he really take it so badly? Her brows furrowed as she tried to center her mind, sitting in a lotus position on the floor of her bedroom. She never would have guessed that flirting, of all things, would finally make him snap. An annoyed sigh left her and she opened her eyes. It was no use. When her brain was that occupied with Orochimaru, meditation was impossible. She felt bad. It was the plain and simple truth. Naomi really liked her boss, so being shunned was a dampener on her general mood. How to apologize, though? Without knowing why he reacted so badly any attempt might make things worse. She could hardly open with something like: "Sorry for asking if you want to bite me, though I really would've liked it." This was about him after all. 

"Mhh, maybe," she mumbled and tapped her lower lip. "Maybe.. Sorry for being presumptuous? What if he likes guys? Oh god, maybe that's it?!" 

Her eyes widened and a cold shiver ran down her back. What if that was it?! Viewed from that angle her blunder looked ten times worse. Given the forcefulness of his reaction that had to be it! 

"Oh god," she said weakly and buried her face in her hands. "I'm horrible."

It would certainly explain some things. Like why he wasn't married. Though it might also have something to do with the human experiments. But still! The amazing fashion sense. The lustrous hair. The wicked humor. Why he didn't mind helping her with her haircare. More and more she became convinced of her idea why her advances were unwelcome. It was a real shame. Naomi sighed wistfully and reached up to her bruised neck. Very lightly she closed her fingers around her own throat and squeezed a little. It stung. She licked her lips while a pleasant shiver ran down her back. Such a shame. She looked down at her palm with an unhappy sigh. An apology was in order. 

With slumped shoulders she walked up and down in front of the door to Orochimaru's lab. The right words just weren't coming. Before she went in there and made it worse she had to think of something. Naomi really didn't want to provoke him into making another attempt on her life. More and more she began to realize that she wanted more than the cordial professional relationship they had. Naomi couldn't explain it to herself, but somehow it felt like for the first time in her life she really met an equal with whom she could connect. Even if.. Well, even if he was gay like she suspected she wanted to deepen their relationship. Being friends with the guy wasn't too much to ask for, surely? She'd just have to apologize first. 

In the end she didn't have the guts to go through with it. Feeling defeated Naomi returned to her room. Maybe he simply needed some more time to let off steam. It was a pathetic excuse, but the best she had. That night, Naomi had a dream. It was only remarkable because it happened so rarely. Usually she passed out like a light, but today was different. She felt as if she was floating in the ocean all weightless. It was pitch black all around her. Still it wasn't a nightmare per se as she wasn't afraid, this was just vaguely unsettling. Suddenly something moved or changed and she felt, dull and faintly as was normal for a dream, the sensation of something hard and scaly winding around her ankles. Tying them together, but not unpleasantly so. It moved up, wrapping around her bare legs. Up and over her hips, where it also pinned her arms to her sides. The scaly body gave off faint warmth. Naomi blinked slowly, confused, bound but not frightened. This creature, whatever it was, did not intend to kill her. Yet. When she managed to move her head enough to glance down, she caught sight of white scales. Then the dream began to fade. 

This couldn't continue. The worry ate at her day and night until she couldn't even concentrate on her beloved experiments. She made no progress meditating and without asking for another human subject she couldn't test her theories either. On 4:23 am sharp she had enough and put her hands down flat on her desk.

"Alright," she said in a level tone. "I'll go to him."

With only minimal trembling in her hand she knocked on his lab door. No response. Was he maybe asleep? Before relief could spread very far, his low hoarse voice responded. 

"Enter."

Naomi swallowed and opened the door after plastering a fake smile on her face. "Hello."

It would seem he redesigned the room since her last visit. There were some small tanks with glowing liquid in them now, containing various unnameable things. Also, at the back of the room, a large, round cobalt blue pillow that looked thick and sturdy enough to be a mattress. He was sitting regally on said pillow and Naomi tried not to let the way his eyes narrowed get to her. Almost immediately she was beset by a feeling of acute danger. She stood there and swallowed hard. Then she took a hesitant step towards him, then another. Once she was standing before the dias on which he throned, she glanced to the side with a faint blush. 

"I'm sorry," she muttered. 

He didn't reply and the feeling of danger tripled in its intensity. Naomi's shoulders drooped and she let out a small sigh. His expression was stony and his eyes ever unreadable. 

"What I did was really inappropriate," she half-mumbled and cast her eyes down. "I'm sorry if it made you uncomfortable."

"Kiss me," he said in a neutral voice.

Naomi's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as she stared at him. "W-what?!" She squeaked. 

"Kiss me or I'll kill you where you stand," he repeated. 

Her heart jumped into her throat and started pounding like a drum. Slowly she climbed up the dias and inched closer to him. What kind of game was this? Or was he trying to teach her a lesson? Naomi's mind was racing a mile a minute as she sunk to her knees in front of the pillow and shifted closer hesitantly. Orochimaru just kept watching her with a blank look, which only added to her mild panic. Her face started to burn when she realized that she'd have to crawl over him to get closer. Her lower lip trembled and she couldn't meet his gaze when she leaned into his space. When their faces were barely a hand apart she hesitated briefly. 

"Well," she mumbled. "I'd hoped for this to be a bit more romantic."

She shifted on her knees for better balance and noticed the sharp tip of a knife or sword at the back of her neck. It nicked her skin as she moved back a little. Naomi stilled and inhaled slowly. Then she looked at his lips. Soft and white as the rest of his skin. It was hard to think about anything, really. She leaned in, tilting her head to the side, and closed her eyes. As soon as their lips met she exhaled through her nose and relaxed. It felt really really good, just as she'd imagined. She moved, sliding her lips against his, and ignored how he didn't respond at all. She wasn't even sure he was breathing anymore. This wouldn't do. Her eyes blinked open and she pulled back minutely to tilt her face to the left and brush his long bangs behind his ear when they tickled her face. Then she closed them again, put both of her hands on his shoulders to steady herself, and kissed him. Again and again. It was weirdly addictive, that feeling. Like her lips were suddenly oversensitive and every single nerve in them prickled pleasantly. There was no way he didn't feel it, too, even though he didn't respond. Eventually she decided to push it like she always did and gently tugged at his lower lip with her teeth. He exhaled slowly. Naomi smiled ever so slightly and ran the tip of her tongue along his lower lip. Either he didn't know what it meant or he was still stubbornly refusing to move. Every thud of her heart felt almost painful as a strange feeling flooded her system. Something warm and soft and hot at the same time. Naomi drew back to breathe and felt that shaky, euphoric feeling rush through her body, drawing a wonderous smile on her face. 

"Oro-kun," she murmured softly. "Oro-kun, can you-"

"That's enough. You can go now."

His voice was like a slap to the face. Cold and detached, bored even. Naomi drew back in shock and stared at him. He was looking to the side with an almost annoyed expression. Her throat grew tight as she slowly shifted back. A game. It was just a game. A game that she lost in every sense of the word. Traitorous wetness grew in her eyes and she hurried to stand up and walk across the room. A sob escaped her once she was out in the hallway. She shouldn't have let it come this far, because now it was too late to stop those feelings from hurting her. It hurt so badly, worse than the time she got hot glue on her palm, worse even than every kick and punch from her siblings. He might as well have stabbed her, Naomi thought miserably as she locked the door behind her and stared bleakly at her lab. Her cold, meaningless empty lab. Even with all this equipment she hadn't come any further on her quest. Bile rose in her throat. She slapped a hand in front of her mouth to muffle – a sob, a choked breath. She stumbled into her bedroom and sank down on her bed. 

The next morning, a neat rack of vials sat on her desk. Naomi glared at them before she huffed and got to work. Before- before she used to draw little doodles on the margins of her reports. Smiley faces, flowers, spirals, anything that helped her focus while she tried to put as many hidden jokes between the lines into her reports as she could get away with. Now though she wrote her findings in a clear, concise and clinically approved manner like she'd been taught at med school. It took a lot less time, barely half an hour until she was done and handed the reports to a messenger waiting at her door. Then she retreated into the lab and meditated. There is no failure that doesn't offer important lessons, the stern voice of her father said in her mind. She would lay these messy feelings to rest and continue on. She evened her breathing and focused inward. Calming and centering herself like she hadn't been able to for a while. Putting up walls between her and the raw hurt inside. 

A polite knock on her door interrupted her meditation and she stood up with an irritated frown. 

"Who is it?"

"Naomi-sama, it's me, Takumi."

"Oh," she said and went to open the door. "Hello again! What's up?"

"I was assigned to be your assistant!" He said happily and blushed. 

"Oh, how nice," she said with a fake smile. "Do come in."

He stepped through the door and looked around with wide, curious eyes. In the wake of her emotional upheaval he'd lost what little appeal he had to her in the first place. Naomi looked away with a neutral expression. She would not make the same mistake twice. 

"Say, have you had any medical training?"

"Hm?! Oh yes! I was the best in my class. Before I joined Orochimaru-sama."

"Excellent. There's something you can help me with!"

"Of course! Anything!"

Naomi smiled humorlessly. Anything, he said. Several days later he wasn't smiling anymore. He was too exhausted for even that. Naomi had strapped him down and experimented with turning her medical jutsus on their heads. Taking chakra instead of giving it. As a med nin, albeit a rather average one, he had large reserves of chakra and good control over it. So he could compensate when she managed to draw it out of him. It was easier in certain body parts like the head, she discovered. Takumi, to his credit, didn't complain. Inbetween experiments she fed him and let him sleep to recover while she took notes. The work she did for Orochimaru was done quickly, her reports written as objective as she could manage. Almost scathing in their complete absence of subjective language. A stark contrast to what they used to be. Naomi found herself unwilling to waste any more time on anything to do with him than she had to. 

At night she was haunted by the recurring dream of a large white snake wrapping all around her -most of the time naked- body. It was just plain strange, but eventually she stopped wondering about it. Once she felt wholly comfortable in the warm scaly embrace, something started to bother her. At first she didn't notice where or how. Then it started between her knees. Something warmer than the snake's body. It rose slowly along the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. Her breathing quickened and heat rose into her cheeks. Her entire body grew hot and she tried to move, to do anything, but it was impossible. Helplessly, she could do nothing but feel how this heavy hot thing suddenly touched her private parts, sending a full body shiver through her. A startled gasp left her when this.. this thing pushed against her insistently. The sensation was overwhelming. It sent shivers down the back of her legs and made them quiver. A low hiss reached her ears and then the huge snake's grasp tightened all around her. Naomi panted open mouthed, startled and overwhemed by the sheer pleasure. The warmt thing eventually managed to push past her folds and she threw her head back with a whimper as the huge dull thing touched her hot sex. 

It slid lower easily as her slick coated it and found her hole. The snake hissed again, low and almost pleased. No way. No-! Naomi panted with wide eyes. Was it trying to- to copulate with her?! Heat pooled low in her belly and her breathing sped up. This was so wrong. Her eyes squeezed shut and she whimpered when she felt the snake's blunt hemipenis slide inside her, spreading her walls painfully wide. It was wrong! Yet she was panting shamelessly as it pushed in further and further, feeling the pulse thundering in her throat. A slimy, oddly cool tongue flicked against the side of her face and the snake tightened around her even further. It pushed its penis deeper inside her and Naomi whimpered as her walls clenched reflexively around it. It was wrong, but she was getting wetter and wetter. It was dripping down her thighs. All her blood had rushed south, into her sex and belly where she felt the hot throbs of pleasure. No way! No way was she going to orgasm from this.. this perversity.. Her mouth dropped open with a gasp when she felt the snake's hot sperm shoot inside her without warning. Naomi threw her head back with a loud moan. The sensation was.. it was.. coupled with the feeling of her womb stretching from the sheer amount of it and it running down her thighs like waterfall, it was too much. With a keening cry she came, clenching desperately around the huge alien penis inside of her. 

Naomi woke with a gasp. It was dark in her room and far too hot. Her skin was coated in sweat that made the nightshirt stick to her body and her panties were downright soggy. She covered her eyes with a shaking hand and felt equal parts disgusted and aroused. The hot throbbing in her sex was undeniable. 

"What the everloving fuck," she muttered darkly. "It's gotta be the exhaustion. It's gotta be."

How pathetic. Dreaming about losing her virginity to a snake, of all the creepy and disgusting things. Maybe she just needed a break? A nice long holiday away from here. Those damn snake lamps were definitely getting to her. She'd ask Orochimaru about it. Given how things were between them now, she didn't see a reason why he should object. 

"Enter," he called after she knocked on his office door. 

Naomi opened the door and came in. She glanced around curiously as an excuse not to have to look at the man himself. A bunch of weird and fascinating knickknacks littered the shelves, several books were strew about and Orochimaru throned at a large desk made of dark wood with elegantly carved legs. Today he wore a black yukata with a huge purple cord tied around his waist, forming a bow behind him. Naomi steeled her nerves before she sat down on the plain visitor chair and stared at a tiny visible spot of polished dark wood on the desk, rather than at him. Her lips twitched as the need to say how badly she wanted to leave bubbled up, but wording was important with him. If she didn't want another hole in her gut, that was. 

"Um.. Orochimaru," she said hesitantly and clenched her hands on her knees. "I'm pretty sure you agree with me when I say that things have been.. not the best.. So that's why I.. I think I should leave-"

"What makes you think I'd let you?" He asked calmly. 

"Huh?" She glanced up at him. 

"Leave my services alive, that is," he added with a smile. 

"I don't want to quit!" She hurried to say. "No way! That's not it."

"So what is it?" 

She met his gaze unhappily. Her feelings were pounding on the walls of the mental prison she put them in. It made her heart clench and look away first. 

"I need some space," she muttered. "A break. Away from here."

When he didn't reply immediately she glanced at him. Orochimaru's jaw was tense. Other than that his expression was blank. A small wobbly smile grew on her face and she quickly lowered her eyes as an excuse to blink several times. 

"It's okay, right? You've got several competent underlings who can do my job. It's not like you need me here. Or want," she added bitterly. 

More silence. It was getting on her nerves. Why wasn't he saying anything? She'd given him such a good base. He only had to agree and that would be it. 

"No."

Naomi pressed her lips together as she pondered whether arguing when he sounded like that was wise. 

"Why not?" She asked in a small voice.

"If that's all," he said dismissively. 

Taking the hint, she stood up and left without another word. For a few wild moments she considered simply packing her bags and leaving anyway, but then a hole in her gut would probably be the most pleasant of punishments. In the end it was Takumi who made her stay. He waved a paper at her excitedly when she returned.

"Naomi-sama, I've got it! I figured out how to reverse the flow more effectively!"

"Huh?" She asked dully. 

"Inverting the handsigns!" He announced triumphantly. 

"Eh?" Her brows rose with curiosity. "Inverting handsigns? How?"

"Here, let me show you," he said. 

He did all the signs to perform a poison draining jutsu, only without water as a buffer. And upside down. It looked almost comical, but it did create a small purple glow around his hands. Scientific curiosity abruptly overtook her as she stepped closer.

"What is that glow?" She asked.

"Well, my theory goes like this..."

In the end, she had to concede that Takumi was a hell of a lot smarter than she thought. It was so simple, too simple really, that she never would've guessed it would work. Naomi beamed at him and wrapped him up in a hug.

"Amazing! Takumi-kun, you're right! This is going work! Oh I'm so happy!" 

"N-Naomi-sama," he stammered and froze up. 

"Let's do a test! Right now!" She beamed. "Please lie down on the table!"

"Of course."

 

He didn't even argue, just laid down with a big goofy smile. Maybe it was good to have an assistant who had a huge crush on her. Was that what Orochimaru was thinking? Her smile dimmed a little. No, don't think about him. She focused on the task at hand and made the inverted handsigns. Immediately she could tell that her chakra flow was different. Pulling inwards. Interestingly enough it manifested as a sickly green glow on her palms. She put her hands on both sides of his head and watched him flinch. Her eyes widened in delight when she felt his chakra flow into her, where it mingled with her own. The rush it gave her was almost like an adrenaline rush. That was why she missed when Takumi fainted. Naomi hastily withdrew her hands and checked his pulse. Still alive. Phew. It would be a shame to lose such a valuable assistant. She threw a blanket over his prone form and immediately went to write down her findings. Next to them, she drew a little doodle of Takumi along with a small black heart. To her, it meant that he'd proven his worth and became more likeable. 

After a few more tests she concluded that the experiement was a success. Inverted handsigns. Who would've thought. Naomi tapped her index finger against her lips and smiled at her notes. She blinked when the lightbulb on the snke lamp to the left blew out with a flash. How annoying. She eyed the bulb and wondered if they had any spares around here. Probably, right? It would strain her eyes too much if she had to read and write in the dim light so she stood up with a sigh and went to search for a replacement. It turned out that Orochimaru had a Chunin serving as quartermaster, who after searching through a huge stash of supplies, could provide her with a new lightbulb. When she returned to her lab Takumi was gone. She shrugged and changed the lightbulb. To her delight, the new one was brighter than the old one. Maybe she could get some proper lighting if she just changed all the others as well? The constant dim glow of those oddly threatening lamps was also dimming her mood. Even more so when her assistant didn't return over the following hour. She stood up with a sigh. She needed a subject to test if inverting other medical jutsus would work. Asking for volunteers among the shinobi was not an option. Those spoilsports would say no anyway. There was only one person who could help her out. 

"Hello?" She called when knocking several times against Orochimaru's lab door yielded no response. "Anyone home?"

"Not now."

Naomi blinked and frowned at the door. "Why not? Are you.. undressed...?"

The mental image made her cheeks heat and lips curl into a wicked grin. She really wouldn't mind seeing that. 

"No," came the rather clipped reply. "Leave."

"Aww," she whined and put her forehead against the wood. 

She closed her eyes and pouted. Even though he'd hurt her.. she still.. Couldn't deny that she wanted to kiss him again. It was such an odd feeling, like her lungs were too big for her ribcage or a fluttering in her gut. She bit her lower lip until she tasted blood. 

"Oro-kun," she muttered against the door. "I've already forgiven you. So...please.."

She thought she heard a faint clanging and rustling sound inside. Those sounds were familiar. They reminded her strongly of something.. Just what? 

"Whatever is so urgent that you persist?"

Naomi's eyes snapped open and she grinned. "Why don't you let me in and find out?"

"I'm in the middle of a delicate operation."

Was that her imagination or did he sound oddly reluctant? "Ohh, an operation? Then you should definitely let me in! I might be able to help with that. Or just let me watch, maybe I'll learn something?"

"Do come in then."

Victory! Naomi grinned broadly and went in. The air was saturated with the scent of blood and desinfectant. Just like she remembered from the med center in Amegakure. Her grin widened when he turned around, wearing a waxed apron splattered with blood. It coated his hands and a few splatters were even on his face. Naomi's heart jumped into overdrive at the sight. A ripple of excitement went through her from head to toe. She raised a hand in front of her broad, only mildly unhinged grin and felt a hot breath escape her.

"Oh my," she murmured, gaze fixed on him.

Orochimaru tilted his head slightly to the side. A small strand of his raven hair got stuck in the blood on his cheek. She swallowed hard and blushed. 

"What is it?" He asked calmly. 

"O-Oro-kun," she breathed and took a step towards him. 

"Hm?" He blinked slowly as she approached. 

Blood dripped on the floor from his hands. Naomi licked her dry lips and barely noticed the body on the table behind him, covered by blue paper sheets. There was a large bloody hole in the torso. She registered this dimly as she walked towards him as if drawn in by a magnet. Her breath came in soft little pants. 

"Oro-kun," she muttered softly and looked up at him. "Can I..? I really want to.."

"What?"

"Kiss you again," she confessed and flushed. 

"Ah?" He tilted his head back and his eyes widened a little in surprise. "Why?"

"B-because.. I want to," she mumbled, half-lidded gaze fixed on his mouth. "Please?"

"This is hardly an appropriate time," he said, though he sounded a little unsure himself. 

"But you look so good right now," she said and pressed herself against him. "Oro-kun."

He was so tense. Naomi didn't understand why, but he looked a hair's breath away from full blown panic. She grinned and got up on her toes. Then she licked the blood off his cheek. Orochimaru's slitted pupils dilated. It looked strange, but was most likely a good sign. He was stiff and still like a marble statue, eyes fixed on her. Naomi licked her lips. Then she leaned in and closed her eyes. It felt just as good as the first time. A pleased noise escaped her as she slid their lips together. Still he didn't respond, but it didn't really bother her. She grabbed a hold of the straps of his apron and intensified the kiss. Soso good, she though hazily. It felt like her entire body throbbed along with her pulse. An endorphine rush flooded her brain and she smiled. When her air was about to run out she drew back, barely enough for their lips to be apart. 

"Mhh. Oro-kun.. It feels so good," she murmured and licked his lower lip. "That means 'open your mouth', okay?"

"Wh-," he swallowed audibly. "Why?"

"Because I want to taste you," she whispered hotly and leaned forward on her toes, pressing her body weight against him. 

Gooseflesh rose on her back when his hands, cold and sticky with blood, came to rest on her exposed flanks. She let out a breathy little moan at the full body shiver it elicted. Naomi trembled and grinned when she looked up and saw how all that remained of his golden irises was a thin ring around his blown pupils. His grip gradually turned bruising, making her grin widen. 

"If this is a prank I'm going to make you suffer," he promised and his voice was a low, gravelly rumble that went straight to her privates. 

"Do whatever you like," she whispered and leaned up. 

This time, when she ran the tip of her tongue along his lower lip, he opened his mouth. Her heart throbbed with excitement as her tongue dove in without hesitantion. The fine hairs at the back of her neck rose when she cut her tongue on something sharp and, upon closer investigation, noticed it was one of his fangs. The added taste of blood made her moan when his tongue slid against hers. It was long and quickly overpowered hers. The operation table rattled when he accidentally knocked against it. Her pulse was thundering in her ears and she wrapped her arms around his neck. 

"Mhh.. mhh.. aah, Oro-kun," she panted when they parted to breathe. "It feels so.."

His fingernails were biting into her skin, his grip was going to leave her with bruises for sure. Naomi panted softly and met his hypnotic stare with a half-lidded one of her own. 

"You're.. strange," he said with a strain in his voice. "Very strange."

"Yeah," she agreed softly. 

"How odd," he muttered. "I don't.."

"You're so good, Oro-kun," she murmured and watched his eyebrows twitch in surprise. 

"Most people would disagree."

"Most people are stupid."

He chuckled hoarsely. Naomi smiled faintly and licked her lips. This was beyond exciting. Her heart was jumping in her chest and she felt so happy she could cry. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and chuckled. 

"Oro-kun, do you want to know something funny?"

"Hm?"

"You're the first guy I've ever kissed," she confessed and felt her face burn even brighter. "I'm glad I waited."

"Person."

"Huh?"

"The first person, you mean. Gender is meaningless to me."

"Oh. Okay," she mumbled and glanced up at him. "You're not gonna laugh at me..?"

"No," he muttered and tilted her chin up. "That would be hypocritical."

"Eh?" She blinked in confusion until he leaned down and kissed her.

And what a kiss it was. Hard and messy, clumsy but so _so_ hungry. Naomi felt like he was trying to devour her. One of his hands grabbed the back of her neck and the other took a hold of her lower jaw, prying it open so he could plunge his tongue into her mouth. It made her knees weak and she made a needy sound. Spittle ran down her chin, but she didn't even care. She tried to keep up with the way his tongue was teasing her, exploring every nook and cranny of her mouth. It was too fast and strong though, dipping in and out of her mouth in a way that made her head spin. A thin thread of spit connected their tongues when he finally drew back. Naomi was beyond aroused. She felt dumb and dazed as all her blood had rushed from her brain and down south. 

"O-Oro-kun," she panted and pressed herself closer, as close as she could with those stupid clothes in the way. 

"The subject," he muttered suddenly and released her. 

Naomi almost stumbled when he suddenly turned around. She stared incredulously at his back when he grabbed thread and needle from a small table. 

"W-what?!"

"I was about to finish the operation when you arrived," he said without looking at her. "With your assistance it would be done much faster."

Getting the hint she sighed deeply and stepped on the other side of the table. With practiced ease he began to sew the man's torso back up. As soon as he finished knotting up the last stitch she focused and made the snake handsign with a crooked grin. 

"Chakra Threads: Stitching Technique," she muttered and watched the threads start to glow green. 

The flesh tightened and started to heal. She'd added a personal twist to the technique that would make the threads dissolve without residue as soon as the flesh was mended to minimize the risk of infection. Orochimaru watched in approval as the man's torso looked as good as new. It was a small miracle that he was still alive at all. 

"A particularly resilient specimen," Naomi muttered. 

"I would seem so," he said. 

They glanced at each other across the operation table. Suddenly she didn't know what to do with her hands anymore. She looked away first. 

"He probably needs a drip now," she muttered. "To make up for the blood loss."

"Mh, probably," he replied easily, though he made no move to prepare one. "Would be a shame if anything happened to this one. Wouldn't it?"

She blinked at him. Orochimaru grinned sharply and yanked the blue paper off. It was Takumi. He'd been experiementing on Takumi-kun. Naomi swallowed and felt her brows twitch. The taller man was watching her like a hawk. She scratched her forehead and huffed. 

"Don't break him. I still need this guy," she said in a neutral tone. "He's a good assistant."

"Is that all he is?" Orochimaru had turned away to clean his hands in a bowl of water. 

An icy shiver ran down her spine at his tone. Why? When had the mood changed? Why did she suddenly feel trapped? When he turned back around he withdrew a small black notebook from within the pocket in his apron. Naomi's eyes widened when he flipped open the last page and showed her her own writing. Automatically her eyes were drawn to the small Takumi doodle with the heart besides it. Orochimaru's face was completely blank. 

"What is this?" He asked calmly. 

"It's not what you think!" She said and flinched when he suddenly hurled the book at her, narrowly missing her face. "Oro-kun!"

"Chose your next words very carefully."

Naomi swallowed. Was he.. jealous? He certainly managed to convey murderous rage without any facial expression whatsoever. His pupils were tiny little slits again. She sighed. 

"It just means that Takumi-kun has become somebody appreciated," she said slowly. "That he has proven to be a valuable help. I was developing a new technique and he contributed-"

"Do you expect me to believe that?"

"It's the truth!" She argued with furrowed brows. "Why are you so angry because of a stupid doodle? What-"

He'd only thrown his arm out towards her without any handsigns, yet an olive colored snake had shot out of his sleeve and wrapped tightly around her neck. She grabbed the scaly body and felt uncomfortably reminded of her odd dreams. 

"What are you doing?" She hissed furiously as her cheeks flushed. 

"Do you think I'm stupid?" He asked calmly. "Where have my doodles gone, then? Do you want to know a secret?"

Naomi pressed her lips together at his mocking tone. His eyes narrowed. 

"The walls have eyes," he said and gestured at a snake lamp. "All of them have cameras behind their eyes. I have seen more than enough. How you're all over this pathetic _boy_."

"You're paranoid," she spat in annoyance. 

In response, the snake tightened until it was hard to breathe. 

"I've been betrayed enough times to know better than to trust," he murmured. "It's not paranoia. I'm proven right time and time again."

"I.. just..think.. he's.. cute...," she ground out with what little air she could get. "Nothing...more."

"That's more than enough!" He snapped furiously. 

Maybe she'd fallen too hard, too fast. Tears began to blue the edge of her vision. Why didn't he believe her? 

"Why?" She choked out.

Black spots began to dance in her vision. Her brain felt like it was on fire. Orochimaru wasn't kind. She knew that. His soul was a black twisted thing. Still. Still. A strange despair took a hold of her. Naomi always knew she'd die before she was old and grey deep down in her heart. Just not that it would happen at the hands of the one person she ever had any kind of genuine feelings for. Flashes of sounds and images from her childhood flew by her inner eye. No one. No one had ever loved her. The too smart girl with those creepy sharp eyes who always saw too much. 

"There's.. just.. you."

She used her last breath to say it, to tell him. Even if he wouldn't believe it. Better to say it than to let the truth die. Her lungs were screaming. Soon enough she'd pass out. All he'd have to do was keep at it a little longer and then she'd be gone. Tears leaked out of her eyes. She closed them slowly on the image of Orochimaru glaring at her. That stupid doodle ruined everything. Her hands dropped to her sides. A cool hand touched her cheek. 

"Is that true?" He asked softly.

Naomi's head jerked once. 

"Will you cry if I kill Takumi?"

Naomi couldn't answer. 

"Will you try to stop me?"

The world was fading to black. A cool finger was placed over her lips. 

"One. One chance. It's all you get."

Suddenly the pressure and the snake constricting her throat were gone. Naomi dropped hard to the floor, sucking in harsh breaths and coughing violently at the spittle she accidentally inhaled in her greed for air. A strange high ringing was in her ears and the world was spinning around her. She saw two pale feet in front of her face and breathed, breathed more desperately than she'd ever breathed. 

"I'm feeling gracious today."

A shudder wrecked her body. It felt like forever until she dared to move and sit up with quaking limbs. Orochimaru smiled calmly down at her as if this was nothing unusual. 

"Naomi-sama!"

Her eyes slid past him, to the operation table where Takumi apparently had woken up. He was pale with dark bags under his eyes and marbled skin indicating slow blood flow. Yet he looked at her in horror and worry. He swung his legs over the edge of the table. She remained quiet and met Orochimaru's gaze evenly. He slid a hand inside his tunic and withdrew a kunai. The sharp black blade glinted in the cold light of the ceiling lamps. Behind him, Takumi stood up on unsteady legs.

"Orochimaru-sama, what's going on? What have you done to her?!" Takumi asked worriedly and with a clear trace of accusation. 

"You have outlived your usefulness, Takumi." Orochimaru said calmly, which made the young man freeze. "Consider yourself lucky that you get to partake in a final experiment."

"W-what are you talking about?" He stammered with wide, green eyes. 

Naomi watched as he spun around faster than he should be able to, faster than anybody should be able to move, and hurled the kunai straight between Takumi's eyes. The young man's head snapped back before he sunk down on his knees, expression frozen in terror. Then he dropped on the floor. Naomi met Orochimaru's gaze calmly as he turned back around. He was smiling very slightly. 

"Are you happy now?" She asked quietly. "Now that you've proven your point?"

"I do feel better," he admitted. "It's a surprise to see that you weren't lying."

She exhaled noisily and stood up. Parts of her ached while other parts felt numb. She wouldn't let Takumi's death be in vain. Naomi went to Orochimaru and looked up at his face. Fragments of a man barely held together in a human form. Too smart for his own good, so smart that he found a way to become god-like. She cupped his jaw with both hands. They were similiar in ways that hurt. She had a feeling there was a lot more hurt yet to come. 

"Oro-kun," she croaked out since her throat ached something fierce. "If it.. showed there.. I'd let you.. cut me open.. so you could.. look.. at my heart."

"I wouldn't do anything so drastic without exhausting all other venues first," he replied easily. "But thanks for the offer."

Naomi hacked out a laugh. Oh yes, the two of them were fucked up. She kissed him softly before burying her face in his chest. He had to believe her. She'd do anything to make him believe in the truth. Because..

"I.. love you."

"Ah," he breathed. "How foolish."

"I know."

He placed a hand on the middle of her back nonetheless. Maybe there was hope yet.

**Author's Note:**

> 1 Kudos = 1 prayer for Takumi.


End file.
